Tableau Spatial Studio & Tableau Stage — Help & Support

Everything you need to build spatial projects on your Mac and view them on Apple Vision Pro, a VR headset, or any web browser. This page covers both apps.

System requirements

  • Tableau Spatial Studio: a Mac running macOS 26 or later.
  • Tableau Stage: Apple Vision Pro running visionOS 26 or later.
  • Web viewing: any modern browser. For immersive VR in the browser, a WebXR-capable headset — Meta Quest, Pico, or a desktop VR setup. Flat (non-immersive) viewing works on phones, tablets, and computers too.
  • All devices on the same Wi-Fi network to share projects.

Getting started

On your Mac

  1. Open Tableau Spatial Studio. You’ll see a Welcome window.
  2. Choose Try the Demo Project to explore a finished project, or Create a New Project to start from scratch.
  3. Build your scene (see below), then turn on a sharing option in the toolbar when you’re ready to view it:
    • Share to Headset — for the Tableau Stage app on Apple Vision Pro.
    • Share to Web — for VR headsets and browsers, via a link or QR code.

On Apple Vision Pro

  1. Install Tableau Stage from the App Store (it’s free).
  2. Open it. When asked, allow Local Network access — this is how the app finds your Mac.
  3. Your Mac appears under Nearby Macs. Tap it, download the project, and press ▶ to play.
Prefer not to install an app, or using a non-Apple headset? Use Share to Web instead and open the link in a browser — see Viewing in a browser or VR headset.

Building a project (Mac)

Add content. Use the Gallery button for shapes, text, and ready-made 360° backgrounds. Use Insert (or drag a file from Finder into the viewport) to add your own 3D models (USDZ), images, videos, and sounds. Very large models are scaled down and placed on the floor automatically.

Arrange it. Drag an object to move it along the floor. Hold:

  • ⇧ Shift to raise or lower it,
  • ⌘ Command to rotate it,
  • ⌥ Option to resize it.

Scroll to zoom; drag empty space to orbit the camera. For exact values, use the inspector on the right — drag the small X / Y / Z labels to slide a number, or type one in.

Add scenes and narration. A project is a sequence of scenes (like pages of a story). Add and reorder them in the left sidebar. Type narration for each scene; the headset reads it aloud during playback.

Add tap-to-learn hotspots. Select an object and turn on “Show info when tapped” in the inspector. Give it a title and text, and optionally attach a picture and a sound. When viewed, the object glows, and tapping it reveals the info panel.

Set a 360° background. Pick a bundled backdrop from the Gallery, or use the Background button to choose your own equirectangular 360° photo or video.

Preview. Press Preview to play the whole project on your Mac — narration included — before you ever put on the headset. It uses the same rendering as the headset, so what you see is what you get.

Everything is undoable with ⌘Z — moves, edits, deletes, and imports. Experiment freely.

Need a refresher inside the app? Choose Help → Tableau Spatial Studio Help (⌘?).

Playing a project (Vision Pro)

  1. Under Nearby Macs, tap your Mac and download a project. It moves to My Projects.
  2. Press ▶ to start. Your room stays visible around the project unless a scene has a 360° background — then use the Digital Crown to control how immersed you are.
  3. Use the floating control card to move between scenes, mute narration, or exit. Pinch its bar to move the card anywhere.
  4. Tap glowing objects to reveal their info panels — some include a picture or a sound. Tap again to close.

Downloaded projects update themselves whenever the Mac saves changes — even while you’re playing.

Viewing in a browser or VR headset New

Share to Web serves your project straight from your Mac to any web browser — no app to install. It works on phones, tablets, and computers as a flat, drag-to-look view, and on WebXR headsets (Meta Quest, Pico, desktop VR) it can go fully immersive with an Enter VR button. It’s the easiest way to show a project on non-Apple hardware or to a whole room quickly.

Share it from the Mac

  1. In Tableau Spatial Studio, turn on Share to Web in the toolbar.
  2. A Web Link button (QR-code icon) appears. Click it to show a scannable QR code and the project’s link (e.g. https://192.168.x.x:8771/). Use Copy Link to paste it into a message or a headset browser.

Open it on a headset or browser

  1. On the same Wi-Fi, scan the QR code or type the link into the browser.
  2. Press ▶ Start. Drag to look around; tap glowing objects to learn more.
  3. On a VR headset, press the green Enter VR button to become fully immersed.
  4. Use ◀ Back / Next ▶ to move between scenes, and the speaker button to mute narration and sound.
First-time security warning is expected. Immersive VR in a browser requires a secure (HTTPS) connection, so the Mac serves the link over HTTPS with its own certificate. The first time you open the link, the browser shows a “Not Secure” or “Your connection isn’t private” warning. Tap Advanced, then Proceed (or Continue) to open the player. This is normal for a direct connection on your own Wi-Fi — the link stays on your local network and nothing is sent over the internet.

The link stays live: a small dot in the top bar shows the connection to the Mac (green = up to date, amber = reconnecting), and the view refreshes automatically whenever you save on the Mac — even mid-project. Any number of people on the network can open the same link at once.

Classroom Mode

On the headset, tap the people icon in the library toolbar. In Classroom Mode, the headset follows the teacher automatically: whatever their Mac shares — or edits — downloads and plays on its own. Ideal for a class moving through a project together. Turn it off to browse and play on your own again. Students still need to progress to the next scene on their own.

Troubleshooting

My Mac doesn’t appear under “Nearby Macs”

This is almost always a network or sharing setting. Check, in order:

  1. Same Wi-Fi network. Both the Mac and the Vision Pro must be on the same network. Guest networks, “AP isolation,” and some school/enterprise networks block device-to-device discovery — try a normal home network or a personal hotspot to confirm.
  2. Sharing is on. In Tableau Spatial Studio, the Share to Headset toggle in the toolbar must be on. It’s off by default.
  3. A project is open. Sharing advertises the open document — make sure a project is open and shared.
  4. Local Network permission. On the Vision Pro, open Settings → Apps → Tableau Stage → Local Network and make sure it’s enabled. If you tapped “Don’t Allow” on first launch, enable it here, then relaunch the app.
  5. Give it a moment. Discovery can take 5–15 seconds. Pull to refresh, or reopen the Nearby Macs list.
  6. Firewall. On the Mac, check System Settings → Network → Firewall. If it’s on, allow incoming connections for Tableau Spatial Studio (or turn the firewall off briefly to test).

The browser shows “Not Secure” / “Your connection isn’t private”

This is expected for a web share. VR in the browser needs a secure connection, so the Mac uses its own certificate. Tap Advanced → Proceed (or Continue) to open the player. The connection stays on your local Wi-Fi; nothing goes over the internet. On some browsers you may need to type thisisunsafe on the warning page to continue.

The “Enter VR” button doesn’t appear (or is greyed out)

  • Use the HTTPS link. VR requires the secure (https://) link. If the popover says “HTTPS is unavailable, VR mode is disabled,” browsers can still view the project flat, but not immersively. Reopen the Web Link popover after the Mac is on Wi-Fi.
  • Use a WebXR headset and browser. Enter VR only shows on headsets that support WebXR (Meta Quest, Pico, desktop VR). Phones, tablets, and laptops get the flat view.
  • Get past the certificate warning first (see above) — the button won’t appear until the page fully loads.

The web link or QR code won’t open

  • Same Wi-Fi. The device opening the link must be on the same network as the Mac. The link uses the Mac’s local IP address, which only works on that network.
  • Sharing still on. Confirm Share to Web is still enabled and the project is open on the Mac.
  • No network found. If the popover says “No network connection found,” the Mac isn’t on Wi-Fi/Ethernet. Join a network, then reopen the popover to get a fresh link.
  • If you copied an old link, get a fresh one from the Web Link button — the address can change when the Mac rejoins a network.

The download fails or hangs

  • Keep both apps in the foreground during the transfer.
  • Make sure the project is still shared on the Mac (the toggle didn’t get turned off, and the document is still open).
  • Move the devices closer to the Wi-Fi router; very large projects (big videos) take longer.
  • Try again — tap the project row to re-download. Existing downloads show a green checkmark with a “Download Again” option.

A model, image, or video shows as a gray box

The asset file couldn’t be loaded. In Tableau Spatial Studio, re-import the file, and make sure 3D models are .usdz. If it displays correctly in the Mac editor but not on the headset or in the browser, re-share so the asset transfers again.

I don’t hear narration

  • On the control card (headset) or the speaker button (browser), check that narration isn’t muted.
  • Confirm the scene actually has narration text (visible in the inspector on the Mac).
  • Check the device isn’t silenced and the volume is up. In a browser, sound starts only after you press Start (browsers block autoplay audio).

A hotspot sound won’t play

Make sure a sound file is attached to that hotspot in the inspector, then re-share the project so the audio transfers. Tap the object, then use Play sound in its info panel.

The room disappears / everything goes black

That scene has a 360° background, which is meant to surround you. On Apple Vision Pro, turn the Digital Crown to dial immersion down and bring your room back, or move to a scene without a 360° background.

I closed the library window while playing (Vision Pro)

On the floating control card, tap the books icon to bring the library window back. To leave playback entirely, tap ✕ on the card, or Stop Playing in the library.

Live updates aren’t arriving

  • On Apple Vision Pro, the headset only auto-updates projects it has already downloaded (or any project when Classroom Mode is on). In a browser, the open link updates itself automatically.
  • Save on the Mac — updates are sent shortly after you pause editing.
  • If a device was asleep or off the network, updates resume once it’s back on the same Wi-Fi.

Tableau Spatial Studio won’t open my project / it opens the wrong window

  • If you quit with a project open, macOS reopens that project next launch instead of the Welcome window — that’s expected. Close the project window to return to Welcome, or use File → New / Open.
  • To reach help any time, use Help → Tableau Spatial Studio Help (⌘?).

Frequently asked questions

Do I need an account or subscription?
No. Both apps are free of accounts, sign-ins, and subscriptions. Nothing is sent to a server or the cloud — projects transfer directly over your local network.
Do I need a Mac to view a project?
To share a project, yes — a Mac running Tableau Spatial Studio on the same Wi-Fi. In the Tableau Stage app, once a project is downloaded it plays any time without the Mac. A web link works while the Mac is sharing and on the same network.
What headsets and devices can view a project?
Apple Vision Pro (with the free Tableau Stage app), WebXR headsets like Meta Quest and Pico (via a web link, in VR), and any phone, tablet, or computer browser (flat view).
What’s the difference between “Share to Headset” and “Share to Web”?
Share to Headset streams to the Tableau Stage app on Apple Vision Pro over the local network. Share to Web serves a link/QR code that opens in any browser — including VR headsets — with no app install. You can use either or both.
Why does the web link show a security warning?
Browser VR requires a secure (HTTPS) connection, so the Mac serves the link with its own certificate. Because it’s self-issued, the browser warns once — tap Advanced → Proceed. The connection stays on your local Wi-Fi; nothing goes over the internet.
What can I put in a project?
3D models (USDZ), images, videos, audio, text, and simple shapes — plus 360° photo or video backgrounds, narration, and tap-to-learn hotspots.
Where do 3D models come from?
Any .usdz file works. You can export USDZ from many 3D tools, capture real objects with Object Capture, or use free model libraries. Tableau Spatial Studio also includes ready-made shapes and 360° backgrounds so you can start with nothing.
Can several people view the same project at once?
Yes. Any number of headsets or browsers on the network can open a shared project. Turn on Classroom Mode on Apple Vision Pro to have headsets follow the teacher automatically.
Is my content private?
Yes. Projects are ordinary files on your Mac and transfer only over your local network to devices you choose to share with. There is no cloud storage and no analytics.
Does it work over the internet / remotely?
No. Sharing — both to the app and to the web — is local-network only, by design. To share a project remotely, send the .spatialproj file (e.g. by AirDrop or email) and open it in Tableau Spatial Studio on the other Mac.