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Data Visualization Design

Choose appropriate charts, honest scales and accessible labels for a small analytical story.

3 reading lessons · about 30 min ·written by MTT

The idea

Choose a chart for the relationship you need to communicate. Bars compare categories, lines show ordered trends and scatter plots reveal relationships between numeric variables. A chart type cannot repair missing context or an undefined metric.

Worked example

Comparing revenue by city suits a bar chart. Showing revenue over successive months suits a line chart with correctly ordered dates. Connecting unrelated product categories with a line would imply an order or continuity that may not exist.

Try it

Write three questions about fictional sales data. Match each to a chart and explain the choice. Identify the data grain and units. Sketch one chart that would be inappropriate for the question and describe the mistaken implication.

Lesson 1 of 3 · About 10 min

Choose the question first

Check your understanding

Course quiz

Finish the course to unlock the quiz

Complete all 3 lessons and 5 questions open up here. You have 3 to go.

What you will learn

Match charts to analytical questions
Explain scale and aggregation choices
Provide labels and non-color cues

Before you start

Prerequisites: None. Draw charts on paper or use an available spreadsheet application.
Cost: Free introductory reading lessons, exercises and quiz. Optional third-party tools, hosting or AI subscriptions may cost money.

Original introductory lessons and assessment by Master the Trick. Estimated times include the suggested exercises.