Nuts and Bolts of Chart & Graph Types [infographic]
The infographic below provides a quick list of the types of charts that are available for analysts/marketers out there. I do not intend to provide a comprehensive list, neither an accurate explanation of each (you will note!) But I do provide a 'tell me which graphs you use and I will tell you who you are' cheat sheet where I describe some of the personality types of people using different charts.
Disclosure: I am aware that any chart can be used in a responsible way, and that every graph has its advantages and disadvantages, but I think there is a rule of thumb of which are good charts and which are not-so-good.
The figure was written by me and designed by Daniel Bronfen, who has contributed another infographic to Online Behavior: Data Visualization: Social-Economical Differences in Brazil.
Chart & Graph Types Infographic
Additional Resources
For tips and tricks on Chart and Information design, I warmly recommend the books below (which I also quote in the infographic):
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About Daniel Waisberg
Daniel Waisberg is the Founder & Editor of Online Behavior. He is also the Owner of Conversion Journey, a Google Analytics Certified Partner. Daniel is a frequent speaker on industry events and the author of Google Analytics Integrations. You can find him on Google+ or Twitter.
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Amazing amount of content related to Analytics. And, if you're looking to relax, check out some videos.
LOL, awesome infographic. Nice job, Daniel(s)!
Nicely written about the best usage of each graph type. I have saved this infographic for my future reporting purpose. Hopefully, I can manage to get a raise from my clients...
Also useful: http://www.juiceanalytics.com/chart-chooser/
Nice infographic Daniel - there are good an bad examples of using all of these. For example:
Good - I find the Radar Plot very useful for survey data
Bad - Pie charts are over used and tend to hide more information than they convey
The one exception is Tree Map - I have get to come across a good example of this in use...
O'Reilly have shown some good uses of Tree-maps: http://radar.oreilly.com/2006/07/treemap-on-rails.html
I have used it myself to visualize changes in search phrases over time to indicate effect of editors SEO work..
This is priceless. Where can I get a poster size print to hang on my wall?
Ditto on the wall sized version.
Fantastic post Daniel. I wish I had thought of this!
Would love to have high res image to print out!!