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Connect Tableau, Power BI, and Any SQL Client to Protobi as a PostgresQL Database Source

Updated at 2026-01-02

Protobi Database API - User Guide

What is the Protobi Database API?

The Protobi Database API allows you to connect business intelligence tools like Tableau, Looker, PowerBI, and other SQL-based analytics platforms directly to your Protobi projects using standard database connections. Your BI tools can query Protobi data as if it were a PostgreSQL database, accessing all of Protobi's calculated fields, cross-tabulations, and statistical computations through standard SQL queries.

Why Use This?

Keep Your Existing Dashboards - You don't need to rebuild dashboards or force everyone to learn a new tool. Continue using Tableau for executive dashboards while accessing Protobi's advanced survey analysis and weighting capabilities.

Access Computed Data - Query weighted data, recoded variables, computed metrics, and cross-tabulations directly from your BI tools without replicating complex calculations.

Standard SQL Interface - Use familiar SQL syntax (SELECT, WHERE, GROUP BY, LIMIT) to query your survey data.

How to Connect

Connection Details

Connect using any PostgreSQL-compatible client (Tableau, psql, TablePlus, DBeaver, etc.):

  • Host: localhost (or your Protobi server hostname)
  • Port: 5432
  • Database: Your Protobi project ID (e.g., 6744814e48513c0002f3d9d3)
  • Username: Your Protobi account email
  • Password: Your Protobi API key
  • SSL: Required

Getting Your API Key

  1. Log into Protobi
  2. Go to Account Settings
  3. Find or generate your API key
  4. Copy and use as the password when connecting

Example: Connecting with psql

psql "host=localhost port=5432 dbname=YOUR_PROJECT_ID user=you@example.com sslmode=require"
# Enter your API key when prompted for password

Example: Connecting with Tableau

  1. Choose "PostgreSQL" as the data source
  2. Server: localhost, Port: 5432
  3. Database: Your project ID
  4. Username: Your email
  5. Password: Your API key
  6. Check "Require SSL"

What Can You Query?

Elements as Tables

Each Protobi element (question, variable, computed field) appears as a table. Query any element by its key:

SELECT * FROM Q1;
SELECT * FROM region;
SELECT * FROM satisfaction_score;

What You Get Back

By default, queries return aggregated distributions - cross-tabulations showing counts and statistics:

SELECT * FROM Q10a_cloud;

Returns a frequency distribution showing how many respondents selected each answer choice.

Supported SQL

Basic Query

SELECT * FROM element_key;

Returns the distribution for that element.

Filter with WHERE

SELECT * FROM Q10a_cloud WHERE region IN (1, 3);
SELECT * FROM satisfaction WHERE score >= 4;
SELECT * FROM Q5 WHERE quarter = 'Q2' AND region = 'West';

Filters apply to the base respondent data before aggregation.

Cross-Tabulate with GROUP BY

SELECT * FROM Q10a_cloud GROUP BY region;
SELECT * FROM satisfaction GROUP BY region, quarter;

Creates cross-tabs (banners) showing the element distribution broken out by the specified dimensions.

Limit Results

SELECT * FROM Q10a_cloud LIMIT 10;
SELECT * FROM Q5 WHERE region IN (1,3) GROUP BY quarter LIMIT 20;

Returns only the specified number of rows.

Combine Them All

SELECT * FROM satisfaction
WHERE region IN ('East', 'West') AND quarter = 'Q2'
GROUP BY region, age_group
LIMIT 50;

Filters respondents from East/West regions in Q2, cross-tabulates by region and age group, returns first 50 rows.

What's Supported Now

✅ SELECT * FROM element_key - Query any Protobi element
✅ WHERE clauses - Filter with IN, =, >=, <=, >, <, !=, and AND
✅ GROUP BY - Cross-tabulate by one or more dimensions
✅ LIMIT - Limit number of rows returned
✅ SSL/TLS - Secure authentication with API keys

What's Coming

🔄 SELECT specific columns - Access elements as columns (raw respondent data)
🔄 JOIN support - Combine data from multiple elements
🔄 OR conditions - More complex WHERE clause logic
🔄 Metadata queries - Browse available elements via information_schema

Authentication & Security

  • All connections require SSL/TLS encryption
  • API keys are scoped to your user account
  • You can only access projects you have permission to view
  • API keys can be regenerated in Account Settings if compromised

Examples

Tableau Use Case

Scenario: Executive team has existing Tableau dashboards showing sales and operations metrics. They want to add customer satisfaction scores from your Protobi survey, weighted by customer segment.

Solution:

  1. Add Protobi as a PostgreSQL data source in Tableau
  2. Query weighted satisfaction scores: SELECT * FROM satisfaction_weighted GROUP BY segment
  3. Join with existing sales data on segment
  4. Dashboard now shows satisfaction alongside business metrics

Quick Analysis in psql

-- How many respondents per region?
SELECT * FROM respondents GROUP BY region;

-- Satisfaction scores for premium customers
SELECT * FROM satisfaction WHERE customer_tier = 'premium';

-- Top 10 product preferences by region
SELECT * FROM product_preference GROUP BY region LIMIT 10;

Troubleshooting

Connection refused: Ensure the PostgreSQL server is running on port 5432

Authentication failed: Verify your email and API key are correct

Element not found: Check the element key matches exactly (case-sensitive)

SSL required: Make sure your client is configured to use SSL

Need Help?