Chart Types

Once you connect to the data that you want to analyze, you can build simple or complex charts. These chart types including the following:

• Bar chart. Plots numeric data by displaying rectangular blocks against a scale. The length of a bar corresponds to a value or amount. Viewers can develop a clear mental image of comparisons among data series by distinguishing the relative heights of the bars. Use a bar chart to display numeric data when you want to present distributions of data. You can create horizontal, as well as vertical bar charts.
• Line chart. Emphasizes the movement or trend of numeric data over time, since they allow a viewer to trace the evolution of a particular point by working backwards or interpolating. Highs and lows, rapid or slow movement, or a tendency toward stability are all types of trends that are well suited to a line chart.
• Area chart. Similar to a line chart, except that the area between the data line and the zero line (or axis) is usually colored or textured. An area chart allows you to stack data on top of each other. Stacking allows you to highlight the relationship between data series, showing how some data series approach or shadow a second series.
• Pie chart. Emphasizes where your data fits in relation to a larger whole. Keep in mind that a pie chart works best when your data consists of several large sets. Too many variables divide the pie into small segments that are difficult to see. Use color or texture on individual segments to create visual contrast.
• Scatter chart. Shows the relationship between two different numeric measures. A scatter chart gives you a sense of trends, concentrations, and outliers that pinpoint where to focus further investigation efforts.
• Bubble chart. Plots data similar to a scatter chart, where the size of each marker is proportional to the value of a third measure.
• Treemap chart. Displays large amounts of hierarchically structured data. Using a set of nested rectangles to illustrate data relationships, sections of a treemap represent branches of a tree.
• Gauge chart. Indicates the current position of a single data value within a given spectrum. This chart has a circular shape. A gauge thermometer chart indicates the current position of a single data value within a given scale. This chart has the shape of a thermometer.
• Pareto chart. Uses the X axis to show group members, and the Y axis to show the percent of the total of all groups that each group represents. This chart highlights the differences between groups of data.
• Box Plot chart. Shows the distribution of data, vertically or horizontally, through five-number summaries: Upper limit, Upper Quartile, Median, Lower Quartile, and Lower Limit. This chart can be represented with or without outliers, also known as whiskers.
• Funnel chart. Displays only one group of data at a time, from the first series to the last series at the bottom of the funnel. Funnel charts are similar to pie charts.
• Pyramid chart. Displays only one group of data at a time, from the first series to the last series at the top of the pyramid. A pyramid chart is similar to a pie chart.
• Heatmap chart. Displays data in a table where the color of each cell is dependent on the value in the cell. A heatmap chart is similar to a spectral map.
• Tagcloud chart. Displays text data, typically used to depict keywords on websites or to visualize free form text. This format is useful for quickly perceiving the most prominent terms.

In addition to the charts that you can create, you can also create interactive, informative maps. Using the lightweight mapping feature, you can view important information for a region and drill down to view and analyze trends, population changes, or sales data. These chart types include the following:

• Choropleth map. Uses color to differentiate between value groups on a map. It is useful for visualizing location-based data, trends, and distributions across a geographic area.
• Proportional Symbol map. Uses marker size and color to differentiate between the data on a map.