There are three different categories of certifications you can get with Tableau. They are for data analysts, server administrators, and Tableau partners. Concentrating on the data analyst certifications, there are three levels of Tableau Desktop certifications. Specialist is the introductory certification, while Associate and Professional are progressively more advanced. You need to pass the Associate level before taking the Professional certification. If you are new to Tableau, then you may wish to focus at first on the Specialist certification. Compared with the Associate certification, the Specialist certificate is a lot cheaper, does not include more advanced elements such as Level of Detail Expressions, and does not expire (the Associate certification expires in two years).