Imagine you have a bunch of numbers, facts, and figures. They might look confusing at first, right? Well, that’s where data visualization comes to the rescue! It’s like giving your data a cool makeover to make it super easy to understand. With data visualization, you turn those numbers into colorful charts, graphs, and pictures that tell a story. You can see trends, compare things, and spot interesting patterns. It’s like magic for your data – turning it into visual insights that anyone can grasp at a glance. In this article, we will go through different types of charts for data visualization.
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Charts For Comparison
1. Bar Chart
A bar chart is like a visual scorecard that compares different things side by side. Imagine you have a bunch of categories, like types of fruits. Each category gets its own bar, and the length of the bar shows how much there is of that category. It’s great for seeing which category is the biggest or smallest. You can also stack bars on top of each other to show different parts of a whole. For example, you can use a bar chart to compare how many apples, bananas, and oranges were sold in a week.
Image from: twinkl
When to use:
- Compare different things or groups.
- Show how items compare to each other.
- Good for showing specific data points.
2. Pie Chart
Pie charts are like slices of a pizza but for data! They’re perfect for showing parts of a whole. Imagine you have data on different types of ice cream flavors. Each slice of the pie represents a flavor, and the size of the slice tells you how much of that flavor there is compared to the whole pie. You can easily see which flavor is the most popular just by looking at the size of the slices. If you’re curious about the percentage of votes different candidates received in an election, a pie chart is the way to go.
Image from: geeksforgeeks
When to use:
- Display parts of a whole.
- Show proportions and percentages.
- Highlight contributions to a total.
3. Tornado Chart
A tornado chart is like a twist on the column chart. It’s all about comparing two sets of data side by side. You have a positive side and a negative side, and the columns go in opposite directions like a tornado’s swirl. This type of chart is great for showing contrasts or changes between two categories. For example, if you want to compare how much money different products earned last year versus this year, a tornado chart helps you see the changes clearly.
Image from: Plotly
When to use:
- Compare two sets of data.
- Highlight differences or changes.
- Useful for positive and negative values.
Charts For Trends
1. Line Chart
In a line chart, lines connect data points, revealing how things change over time. These points represent different times, like snapshots. As lines move, trends become clear. Line charts are great for tracking progress, such as watching a race or seeing how a city’s temperature changes in a day.
Image from: Seaborn
When to use:
- Show changes over time.
- Connect data points with lines.
- Ideal for tracking progress or trends.
2. Area Chart
An area chart is like coloring in a story of change. It’s made by filling the space under a line chart. This colored area shows how data values progress over time. Area charts compare data sets, giving a clear view of trends and changes’ sizes. For example, you could compare the population growth of cities over decades.
When to use:
- Compare data sets over time.
- Fill the space under a line chart.
- Highlight both trends and changes’ sizes.
Charts For Distribution
1. Histogram
A histogram groups numbers into bins and each bin indicate a specific range. Imagine sorting your data into buckets, and then counting how many numbers fall into each bucket. Each bar in the histogram represents a bin, and its height shows how many numbers are in that range. It’s a fantastic way to see how your data is spread out, like understanding the ages in a group or the frequency of test scores.
Image from: Wikipedia
When to use:
- Show how data is spread out.
- Use bars to represent how often numbers appear.
- Good for understanding where data clusters.
2. Frequency Polygon
A frequency polygon is just an extension of the histogram. In frequency polygon, we take the tops of each bar in a histogram and connect them to form a line. The line itself is called the frequency polygon.
Image from: SAS
When to use:
- Display data patterns with lines.
- Connect tops of histogram bars.
- Great for seeing how data changes.
3. Box Plot
A box plot displays the spread of data in a box shape and points out the minimum, maximum, median, lower quartile, higher quartile of the data. It’s a bit like highlighting the key details of your data, similar to summarizing a movie’s plot in a few sentences.
When to use:
- Show data range and center.
- Highlight main values like middle and edges.
- Good for comparing groups or spotting outliers.
4. Violin Plot
A violin plot is a chart that combines features from a box plot and a density plot. It shows the distribution of data by mirroring and stacking density plots on each side of a central axis. By that, it is easier to observe not only the central tendency but also the spread and density of values within a group.
Image from: Seaborn
When to use:
- Display data spread and thickness.
- Combine box plot and smudged look.
- Great for comparing groups’ shapes.
Charts For Correlation and Relationships
1. Scatter Plot
A scatter plot is a chart that uses dots to match two sets of numbers (x-axis and y-axis). Think of each dot as showing a friend’s likes for movies and music. If the dots gather, it means friends have alike tastes. Scatter plots help show how two things connect.
When to use:
- Compare two variables
- Identify potential correlations
- Useful for understanding relationships
2. Bubble Chart
A bubble chart makes dots bigger or smaller based on a third value. Imagine each dot representing a song’s popularity, and its size showing how much people like it. So, if a dot is big, that song is super popular. Bubble charts help see three things at once – like how much people spend, their age, and their income.
Image from: Python Graph Gallery
When to use:
- Compare three things together.
- Use dot size for extra detail.
- Good for showing how things relate.
3. Heatmap
A heatmap colors a chart based on values. Picture coloring countries on a map based on how hot they are. Dark colors show hotter places and lighter ones show cooler spots. Heatmaps use colors to show data patterns – like which hours people visit your website the most. Dark colors mean high traffic and light ones mean less.
Image from: Seaborn
When to use:
- Show data with colors.
- Quickly see patterns or trends.
- Helpful for big amounts of info.
Charts For Progression and Hierarchies
1. Gantt Chart
A Gantt chart is like a visual to-do list for projects. Imagine each bar representing a task, and the length showing how long it takes. As tasks overlap, it’s clear if things are on track or delayed. Gantt charts help you manage projects by showing who does what and when.
Image from: TechTarget
When to use:
- Use them for managing projects.
- Plan tasks and see progress visually.
- They’re great for tracking project timelines.
- They help teams stay organized and hit deadlines.
2. Funnel Chart
A funnel chart looks like, well, a funnel! Picture pouring data in the wide top and seeing how it narrows down. It’s used for stages, like sales process or website visitors turning into customers. You can quickly see where people drop off or move ahead.
Image from: Plotly
When to use:
- Use these for understanding processes.
- Show how people move through stages.
- They’re handy for tracking customer conversion.
- They reveal where people drop off or move forward.
3. Bullet Chart
A bullet chart is like a mix of bar and thermometer. Think of it as tracking goals. Imagine a bar showing current progress, and a line marking the target. It’s great for comparing data against goals, like sales targets or performance benchmarks.
Image from: Wikipedia
When to use:
- Use these for tracking goals and performance.
- Compare achievements against targets.
- They’re useful for visualizing multiple measures.
- They help you monitor progress and stay on track.
