4. Match your story with a chart type.

Once you have identified the points and trends you want to highlight with your data, it’s time to choose your chart type. To learn more about chart types, visit Depict Data Studio’s Interactive Chart Chooser. Another resource for chart types is the R Graph Gallery. Some charts to consider are listed below, grouped by chart type.

• Points in time: Line, bar, stacked area, small multiples, sparklines
• Part-to-whole: Pie/donut, stacked bar, waffle chart
• Comparisons: Bar, stacked bar, lollipop, small multiples
• Correlation: Scatterplot, bubble, heat tables/heat maps
• Distribution: Histogram, scatterplot, pyramid
• Maps: Choropleth

To make your charts accessible, choose simple, familiar visualizations instead of complicated graphs, which can be hard for people to understand. For people with certain cognitive impairments, complex visualizations can be especially challenging. See the Accessibility section of these guidelines for more details on designing accessible data visualizations.