AdventureWorks
Tables

Complete reference guide to all tables in the AdventureWorks Data Warehouse. Understand the structure, relationships, and key columns for effective data analysis.

Sales & Territory

DimSalesTerritory

Contains information about sales territories—regions, countries, and sales groups where sales activities are conducted. Useful for analyzing sales by geography.

Key Columns

  • SalesTerritoryKey: Unique ID for the territory
  • SalesTerritoryRegion: Region name (e.g., Northwest)
  • SalesTerritoryCountry: Country name
  • SalesTerritoryGroup: Grouping of territories for higher-level analysis

Business Scenarios

DimScenario

Stores different business scenarios such as Actual, Budget, or Forecast. Used in financial or sales analysis to compare different scenarios.

Key Columns

  • ScenarioKey: Scenario identifier
  • ScenarioName: Name of the scenario (e.g., Actual, Budget)

Fact Tables

FactAdditionalInternationalProductDescription

Holds product descriptions localized by culture or language, enabling multi-lingual reporting.

Key Columns

  • ProductKey: Identifier for the product
  • CultureName: Language or culture code (e.g., 'en-US')
  • ProductDescription: Localized product description text

FactCallCenter

Tracks performance and operational metrics for call centers such as number of operators, calls handled, and service grades. Important for customer service analysis.

Key Columns

  • FactCallCenterID: Unique call center record ID
  • DateKey: Date of record
  • TotalOperators: Number of operators on shift
  • Calls: Number of calls handled
  • ServiceGrade: Quality grade or score for service

FactCurrencyRate

Stores currency exchange rates on specific dates. Vital for converting sales or financial figures into a common currency for analysis.

Key Columns

  • CurrencyKey: Currency identifier
  • DateKey: Date of the rate
  • AverageRate: Average exchange rate for the day
  • EndOfDayRate: Exchange rate at market close

FactFinance

Captures financial transactions including amounts related to departments, accounts, and organizations across different scenarios. Used for detailed financial reporting.

Key Columns

  • FinanceKey: Unique finance record ID
  • DateKey: Date of transaction
  • OrganizationKey: Organization involved
  • AccountKey: Financial account
  • Amount: Transaction amount

FactInternetSales

Main fact table for online sales orders, including quantities, pricing, discounts, and dates. Central for e-commerce sales analysis.

Key Columns

  • ProductKey: Product sold
  • OrderDateKey: Order date
  • SalesOrderNumber: Unique order identifier
  • OrderQuantity: Number of units ordered
  • SalesAmount: Total sales value

FactInternetSalesReason

Links internet sales orders to reasons for purchase or promotions used, supporting analysis of sales drivers.

Key Columns

  • SalesOrderNumber: Order identifier
  • SalesReasonKey: Reason or promotion ID

FactProductInventory

Tracks inventory movements such as stock coming in or going out, and current balance per product and date. Used to manage stock levels.

Key Columns

  • ProductKey: Product ID
  • MovementDate: Date of inventory movement
  • UnitsIn: Quantity received
  • UnitsOut: Quantity shipped/sold
  • UnitsBalance: Ending inventory

FactResellerSales

Details sales through resellers, including product, customer, and financial data. Useful for channel sales analysis.

Key Columns

  • ResellerKey: Reseller ID
  • OrderDateKey: Sale date
  • SalesOrderNumber: Order ID
  • SalesAmount: Sales revenue

FactSalesQuota

Stores sales target quotas for employees over specific time periods, supporting performance evaluation and goal tracking.

Key Columns

  • EmployeeKey: Employee ID
  • CalendarYear: Year of quota
  • SalesAmountQuota: Sales target amount

FactSurveyResponse

Contains customer survey responses linked to product categories, aiding in customer satisfaction and product feedback analysis.

Key Columns

  • SurveyResponseKey: Survey record ID
  • CustomerKey: Customer ID
  • ProductCategoryKey: Category surveyed

NewFactCurrencyRate

An updated currency rates table with similar data to FactCurrencyRate, possibly for performance or historical reasons.

Key Columns

  • CurrencyID: Currency code
  • CurrencyDate: Date of rate
  • AverageRate: Exchange rate

Customer & Prospects

ProspectiveBuyer

Holds demographic and contact info for potential customers, used for marketing and lead generation.

Key Columns

  • ProspectiveBuyerKey: Unique prospect ID
  • FirstName, LastName: Names
  • YearlyIncome: Estimated income
  • EmailAddress: Contact email

DimCustomer

Customer master data including demographics, contact details, and purchasing attributes.

Key Columns

  • CustomerKey: Customer ID
  • FirstName, LastName: Names
  • EmailAddress: Email
  • YearlyIncome: Income

Financial Dimensions

DimAccount

Dimension for financial accounts, their hierarchy, and types used in finance reporting.

Key Columns

  • AccountKey: Account ID
  • AccountDescription: Description
  • AccountType: Type (e.g., Asset, Liability)

DimCurrency

Dimension listing currencies used in transactions with keys and names.

Key Columns

  • CurrencyKey: Currency ID
  • CurrencyName: Currency name (e.g., USD)

Time & Calendar

DimDate

Date dimension table with extensive calendar info like day, week, month, quarter, fiscal periods, and multilingual names for dates.

Key Columns

  • DateKey: Date ID (YYYYMMDD)
  • FullDateAlternateKey: Actual date
  • CalendarYear, CalendarQuarter
  • EnglishMonthName, SpanishMonthName

Organization & Employee

DimDepartmentGroup

Organizational department group hierarchy for categorizing departments in reports.

Key Columns

  • DepartmentGroupKey: Dept group ID
  • DepartmentGroupName: Group name

DimEmployee

Employee dimension with personal info, job details, and contact info, useful for HR and sales analysis.

Key Columns

  • EmployeeKey: Employee ID
  • FirstName, LastName
  • HireDate, BirthDate
  • EmailAddress

DimOrganization

Organization hierarchy and ownership details for business units or companies in the data warehouse.

Key Columns

  • OrganizationKey: Org ID
  • OrganizationName
  • PercentageOfOwnership

Geography

DimGeography

Geographical dimension with detailed location info for customers and sales territories.

Key Columns

  • GeographyKey: Geo ID
  • City, StateProvinceCode, CountryRegionCode

Product Catalog

DimProduct

Product catalog dimension containing product attributes, descriptions in multiple languages, costs, pricing, and status.

Key Columns

  • ProductKey: Product ID
  • EnglishProductName, SpanishProductName
  • StandardCost, ListPrice
  • ProductLine, ProductSubcategoryKey

DimProductCategory

High-level product categories grouping related products.

Key Columns

  • ProductCategoryKey: Category ID
  • EnglishProductCategoryName

DimProductSubcategory

Subcategories under product categories providing more granular grouping.

Key Columns

  • ProductSubcategoryKey: Subcategory ID
  • EnglishProductSubcategoryName
  • ProductCategoryKey

Marketing & Sales

DimPromotion

Stores details on promotions and discounts used in sales campaigns.

Key Columns

  • PromotionKey: Promotion ID
  • EnglishPromotionName
  • DiscountPct
  • StartDate, EndDate

DimReseller

Information about resellers including company name, contact details, and sales territory.

Key Columns

  • ResellerKey: Reseller ID
  • ResellerName
  • Phone, EmailAddress
  • AnnualSales

DimSalesReason

Reasons behind sales promotions or events, supporting cause analysis of sales spikes.

Key Columns

  • SalesReasonKey: Reason ID
  • SalesReasonName
  • SalesReasonReasonType

What's Next?

Now that you understand the table structure, explore sample queries and discover key business questions to ask.