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Adaptive Planning
Last Updated: 2023-06-23
Reference: Comparison of Attributes and Dimensions

Reference: Comparison of Attributes and Dimensions

Behavior Comparison

Custom dimensions are similar to attributes, but serve a different purpose in your model. Imagine your data as sheets of paper filed in a cabinet. Custom dimensions are the folders that hold the paper. Attributes are the codes that you put on the folders.
The behavior and capabilities of attributes in the model differs from dimensions. To select between the two, consider these tables.

Capabilities

Capabilities
Custom Dimensions
Attributes
Tag levels
Must have the
List dimension
 off in the
Dimension Details
.
Yes
Tag accounts
No
Yes
Tag versions
No
No
Tag custom dimensions
No
Yes
Secure for access rules.
Yes
Yes
Deleting affects data.
Yes
No
Easy to delete.
No
Yes
Hierarchical.
Conditional
Yes
Add to a standard sheet.
Yes
No
Add to cube and modeled sheets.
Yes
Yes
Hide values from specific versions.
Yes
No

Behavior with Data

Custom Dimensions
Attributes
Are metadata even when they tag levels.
Tag metadata (accounts, custom dimensions, and levels).
Create specific intersections of data in the model, along with levels, time, and accounts.
Associate with the data that intersects at the tagged metadata.

Behavior in Tagged Hierarchies

Custom Dimensions
Attributes
You can only tag levels with custom dimension values, and the dimension must not have the
List dimension
 option on. You don't need to tag child and parent levels with the same level dimension value. Each sibling level can have different custom dimension values.
Child metadata inherits the attribute of the parent metadata. Example: Tag the
G&A
 parent level with
West Coast
. We automatically tag all the levels that roll up to
G&A
 with
West Coast
.
To tag each level with a different attribute value, you must leave the parent level uncategorized or create a hierarchical attribute value list. Example:
East Coast
 attribute value has 2 child attribute values:
Northeast
 and
Southeast
. Tag the
G&A
 with
East Coast
. For the child level, you can select
East Coast
,
Northeast
, or
Southeast
.

Behavior with Levels

You can use either attributes or custom dimensions to tag levels.
Custom Dimensions
Attributes
When you tag levels with custom dimensions, you must associate the level dimension to the data. Otherwise, we tag the data with the
Uncategorized
 value of the level dimension. Assigning the level dimension value to the data partitions the data further by the level dimension values.
When you tag a level with an attribute, the level always has that attribute. All the data associated with the level is also associated with the attribute.
When you add the level dimension value to a report, the report returns all possible combinations of the levels and level dimension values.
When you add the level attribute value to a report, the report returns only the levels tagged with the attribute values.
On sheets, you must have the level dimension on the sheet to associate it with the data of the related level. From the sheet, you can override the custom dimension value associated with the level. Example: Tag the
Finance
 level with
East Coast
. In sheets, select the
Finance
 level. Select the
West Coast
 dimension value. The data now intersects at
Finance
 and
West Coast
.
When you enter data at the level, the attribute tagging the level automatically tags the data, even when the attribute isn't on the sheet. The attribute is read-only when it's on the sheet.

Behavior on Sheets

Sheet Type
Custom Dimensions
Attributes
Standard
To tag the data with the custom dimension values, the custom dimension must be on the sheet. Otherwise, the data automatically gets tagged with the
Uncategorized
 value of the custom dimensions.
You don't need to add the attribute to any sheet. Example: We automatically tag all data at the
Finance
 level with the level attribute value,
East Coast
.
Modeled
  • Custom dimension act like all other dimensions. You can select different values for each row.
  • For level dimensions, you can override the association between the levels and the level dimensions. Example: You can select
    West Coast
     for
    Finance
     level, even though it should be
    East Coast
    .
  • When you select an account, custom dimension, or level in a row, the associated attribute prefills with the attribute value.
  • You can also select an attribute value and it filters the associated dimension, displaying only those dimensions tagged with the selected attribute value. You must turn on the
    Enable as filter for dimension
     option in the attribute settings.
  • For level attributes, the attribute value is read-only.
Cube
  • When the dimensions are in cube filters, you must select a leaf level dimension value to enter data on the sheet.
  • For level dimensions, you can override the level and level dimension association. Example: Add
    Region
     dimension to the filter and add
    Levels
     to the rows. Select
    West Coast
     from the cube filter. Enter data in all the levels that roll up to
    G&A
    . By doing so, you tag the data you enter with
    West Coast
     at each level, regardless of its tagged dimension.
  • Use the attributes to filter the associated dimension values, accounts, or levels. Example: Select the
    West Coast
     attribute value. The level drop-down list displays only the levels tagged with
    West Coast
    . When levels are in the rows, the rows display only the levels that tagged with
    West Coast
    .
  • Attributes on cube sheets sometimes display partial rollup values. See Concept: Partial Attribute Rollups in Cube Sheets.