This data package contains field and experimental data used to investigate how trade-offs between herbivore palatability and competitive ability shape macroalgal community dynamics on coral reefs in Moorea, French Polynesia. Data were collected from a series of complementary assays and manipulative field experiments conducted in lagoon habitats on the north shore of Moorea between 2019–2022. Focal macroalgal taxa included the unpalatable brown alga Turbinaria ornata and the more palatable species Sargassum pacificum and Amansia rhodantha. The dataset includes: (1) short-term in situ herbivory assays used to quantify relative palatability of focal macroalgae using both single-species and multi-choice feeding assays exposed to natural assemblages of browsing reef fishes; (2) six-month competition assays conducted in herbivore-exclusion cages to estimate the relative competitive effects among macroalgal species; (3) a two-year field experiment testing how herbivory influences long-term macroalgal community trajectories and the persistence or replacement of Turbinaria-dominated assemblages; and (4) a 10-day field experiment examining how ambient browsing intensity and initial macroalgal community composition influence the capacity of herbivores to provide of exposed hard substrate suitable for coral colonization. These data support analyses evaluating whether trade-offs between palatability and competitive ability can predict macroalgal community outcomes under differing levels of herbivory and whether herbivorous fishes can facilitate reef recovery by creating substrate suitable for coral recruitment.