Chart Chooser

Find your chart based on your data type and objective

Explore charts

If you are aware of your data type and objective, jump straight to the Chart Chooser tool and start having fun.

Need help choosing?

Learn the three simple step to choosing the right chart.

1. Know Your Data Type

Knowing what kind of data you are dealing with is an essential phase to better extract insights from the data; since for each data type, you need to use the right mathematical techniques and visualization types.

Categorical

Data is labeled categorical if their values describe a quality, grade, level, or any other characteristics. Categorical data can be Nominal or Ordinal.

Ordinal

Ordered variables where the number of units in each variable is not the same.

Examples of Ordinal Data

Data is ordinal if it represents an ordered quality variable, and the number of units in each variable is not the same.

Levels
On a happiness scale, joy (high) has more units of happiness than sad (low.)

Times of day
Morning is 6 hours, whereas evening lasts for about 3 hours.

Stages of education
Elementary school has 8 grades and lasts for 8 years, whereas college consists of 4 grades and lasts 4 years.

Nominal

Categorical data where the order doesn't matter.

Examples of Nominal Data

Nominal data is a type of categorical data where the order doesn't matter.

Gender

Countries' names

Colors

Tip: To identify nominal data, ask yourself the following question: Will the meaning change if I change the variables' order? If not, you have nominal data.

Continuous

Data is labeled continuous if the values are measured. Continuous data could be either interval or ratio.

Interval

Data where proportion doesn't make sense, and the zero has no meaning.

Examples of Interval Data

Interval data represents values where proportion doesn't make sense, and the zero has no meaning.

Intelligence quotient

Temperature

Time of the day
1 pm, 2 pm, 4 am, etc

Tip: Interval data is often used in the social sciences.

Ratio

Data where the zero functions as a point of reference, and proportions make sense.

Examples of Ratio Data

For ratio data, the zero has a meaning as a point of reference, and proportions make sense.

Distance
5km, 1,84m, etc.

Weight
81.5kg

Days
2 or 3 days

Times
1 hour, 34min

Tip: Notice that ratio data does not have negative values, as there is no negative height or weight. Ratio data is popular in physical sciences.

2. Define your Objective

There are many objectives to visualize a data set. Here are the main commonly used objectives:

Comparison
Comparison estimates the similarities or not between two or more elements. Line, Bar, Bubble charts, and Treemaps are often used to compare categorical data.
Composition
Composition shows the continuent parts of an element. Donut, Pie, Stacked Bar, and Stacked Column charts are often used to visualize composition.
Relationship
Relationship demonstrates how one variable affects other variables. Scatter and Bubble charts are often used to visualize relationship.
Hierarchy
The hierarchy is a system where elements are arranged or ranked one above another. Treemap, Sunburst, and Circle chart are used to visualize hierarchy.
Distribution
Distribution depicts the frequency of a variable through time or space. Scatter, Histograms, and Pyramid charts are used to visualize distribution.
Flow
The flow is the action of moving along in a steady and continuous stream. Sankey diagram and Gantt are the main charts used to visualize the flow.