Chart types

Different sets of data are particularly suited to a certain chart type. The following is an overview of the main chart types and their most common uses.

Bar

A bar chart (also known as a column chart) displays or compares several sets of data. Two useful bar charts are the Side-by-Side bar chart and the Stacked bar chart.

• Side-by-Side bar chart
  A Side-by-Side bar chart displays data as a series of vertical bars. This type of chart is best suited for showing data for several sets over a period of time (for example, last year's sales figures for AZ, CA, OR, and WA).
• Stacked bar chart
  A Stacked bar chart displays data as a series of vertical bars. This type of chart is best suited for representing three series of data, each series represented by a color stacked in a single bar (for example, sales for 1997, 1998, and 1999).

Line

A line chart displays data as a series of points connected by a line. This type of chart is best suited for showing data for a large number of groups (for example, total sales over the past several years).

Area

An area chart displays data as areas filled with color or patterns. This type of chart is best suited for showing data for a limited number of groups (for example, percentage of total sales for AZ, CA, OR, and WA).

Pie

A pie chart displays data as a pie, split and filled with color or patterns. Pie charts are typically used for one group of data (for example, the percentage of sales for the entire inventory); however, you have the option to choose multiple pie charts for multiple groups of data.

Doughnut

A doughnut chart is similar to a pie chart, displaying data as sections of a circle or doughnut. If, for example, you charted sales by region on a particular report, you would see the total number of sales (the figure) in the center of the doughnut and the regions as colored sections of the doughnut. As with the pie chart, you have the option to choose multiple doughnut charts for multiple groups of data.

3-D Riser

A 3-D Riser chart displays data in a series of 3-dimensional objects, lined up side-by-side, in a 3-dimensional plane. The 3-D Riser chart shows the extremes in your report data. For example, the difference in sales between countries is visually dynamic when presented in this chart.

3-D Surface

3-D Surface charts present a topographic view of multiple sets of data. If, for example, you need a chart to show the number of sales by customer by country, in a visually dynamic and relational format, you might consider using the 3-D Surface chart.

XY Scatter

An XY Scatter chart is a collective of plotted points that represent specific data in a pool of information. The XY Scatter chart allows the user to consider a larger scope of data for the purpose of determining trends. For example, if you input customer information, including sales, products, countries, months, and years, you would have a collective of plotted points that represents the pool of customer information. Viewing all of this data on an XY Scatter chart would allow you to speculate as to why certain products were selling better than others or why certain regions were purchasing more than others.

Radar

A radar chart positions group data, such as countries or customers, at the perimeter of the radar. The radar chart then places numeric values, increasing in value, from the center of the radar to the perimeter. In this way, the user can determine, at a glance, how specific group data relates to the whole of the group data.

Bubble

A bubble chart displays data as a series of bubbles, where the size of the bubble is proportional to the amount of data. A bubble chart would be very effective with the number of products sold in a certain region; the larger the bubble, the greater the number of products sold in that region.

Stock

A stock chart presents high and low values for data. It is useful for monitoring financial or sales activities.