Good enough to great

A quick guide for better data visualizations

1. Charts

Don’t get boxed in with chart wizards or just-add-data pre-fab visuals. For great data visualizations, one size does not fit all. Ask yourself: what different kind of visualizations will tell the most truthful story, and best answer the questions at hand?

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Comparing categories

Bar charts are best utilized when you have a single measure, and want to compare categories.

Comparing categories

Checking progress

Bullet charts, reference lines, bands, and distributions focus attention on targets.

Checking progress

Distribution

Histograms and box plots show where your data is clustered, and can compare categories.

Distribution

Regional analysis

Visualize data on geographical maps to answer locational specific questions, or aid geographical exploration, not just because it looks nice.

Regional analysis

Custom shapes

Use subject matter shapes to tell a more compelling story.

Custom shapes

Make it great with custom shapes

This visualization shows the number of records for different endangered species listed in Africa, but the animals themselves are lost in the story.

Good Great

2. Color

Color is one of the most powerful aesthetic features because it’s an attention-grabber. It’s the first thing we notice, and it can immediately highlight specific insights or identify outliers. The data, not personal favorites or brand colors, should drive the use of color to make a point.

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Differentiation

Don’t use similar colors, or too many colors. Don’t re-use colors for different dimensions or measures on the same dashboard.

Comparing categories

Measuring

Does the color scale match my data? Does the color move from light to dark, or is it stepped to best represent what you’re measuring?

Checking progress

Relatable

Semantically-resonant colors help people process information faster. So use yellow to depict bananas, red to represent heat.

Distribution

Make it great with color

This dashboard contains data from 100 observations of global surface temperatures (°C) around the world from 1961- 1990. While these visualizations are accurate, the color red represents cooler temperatures, and doesn’t resonate with the information the data is trying to portray.

Good Great

3. Size

The bigger the object, the bolder it looks. Bold shapes and colors might work well with bar charts and area charts, but they may also look gaudy and garish when used in a different chart, like a treemap. Use size to draw emphasis to your key message, not obscure it.

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Line and bar charts

If the difference between data points is very minimal or very great, size may not always be a good encoding tool, as the visuals may become hard to read.

Line and bar charts

Map charts

Mark size should be based on the range of values on the map.

Map charts

Make it great with size

This visualization shows San Francisco Airbnb listing data on a map. Because all of the listings are the same size and color, even with filters, it’s hard to differentiate the value between the listings at a glance.

Good Great

4. Text

Readability is essential. Make the most important information stand out.

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Titles

Keep them short, but powerful. Convey the point, message or story in the fewest words possible.

Titles

Labels

Find the sweet spot. Too many mark labels can be very distracting. Try labeling the most recent mark, or min/max. Save additional and more detailed information for tooltips.

Labels

Make it great with text

This data visualization will show you which Beatle wrote what song.This bar chart is pretty good, but because there’s a lot of text, the names of the albums get cut off—immediately taking away from the purpose and the fun of this visualization.

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5. Dashboard layout

Your dashboard’s purpose is to help guide the reader’s eye through more than one visualization, tell the story of each insight, and reveal how they’re connected. The more you employ better dashboard design, your users will discover what’s happening, why and what’s most important. Take into account how you’re guiding their eyes across the dashboard. Are you showing the user where to look next?

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Guide the user

Don’t leave people high and dry without guidance on how to use a visualization. Try swapping a filter title with explicit language directions about how to navigate.

Guide the user

Rule of three

Don’t make a lot of important information compete for attention. Most of the time, more than three visualizations on one dashboard is too many.

Rule of three

Tell a story

If you need more than one dashboard, or are preparing for a presentation, connect the different visualizations with story points. Tell the narrative of your data with visuals that build on each other, highlight specific insights, and provide additional context, all in one seamless presentation. It sure beats cutting and pasting static images into a power point.

Tell a story

Make it great with story points

This dashboard shows global growth and development indicators, but it has four visualizations crammed into a single place.

Good Great

These story points allow for indicators and insights to be explored in depth for each visualization in a more organized way. Click on the dashboard to see story points in action.

Great visualizations will not only help you understand more about your data, they’ll offer faster, more meaningful answers, and even inspire others to ask and answer new questions.

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