Create charts—ArcGIS Insights

To create interactive charts, select one or more string, number, rate/ratio, or date/time fields from the data pane and drag them onto the page, or use the Chart button at the top of the data pane.

You can also switch to different supported visualization types from existing cards.

Tip:

Drag-N Drop You can copy a chart card onto another page by dragging it to the New page tab or an already created page. If you want to copy the chart onto the same page, use Ctrl+C to copy and Ctrl+V to paste.

Chart types

There are several types of charts that can be created using ArcGIS Insights. Insights uses smart defaults to create the best type of chart for the data you want to visualize, so you know you are always getting the best type of chart for the field that you select.

The table below indicates the inputs for each chart, related visualizations you can switch to using the Visualization type button , and questions the chart can help you answer.


Visualization	Minimum data requirements	Related visualization types	Questions it can help you answer
Bar chart	One string field	Unique values map Summary table Reference table KPI Column chart Treemap Bubble chart Line graph Donut chart Point chart	How is it distributed (by category)?
Box plot	One number or rate/ratio field	Proportional symbol map Summary table Reference table KPI Histogram	How is it distributed? What are the high values? What are the low values?
Bubble chart	One string field	Unique values map Summary table Reference table KPI Bar chart Column chart Treemap Line graph Donut chart	How is it distributed (by category)?
Chord diagram	Two string fields	Summary table Reference table Bar chart Stacked bar chart Column chart Stacked column chart Treemap Heat chart Data clock Link chart Line graph	How is it related?
Column chart	One string field	Unique values map Summary table Reference table KPI Bar chart Treemap Bubble chart Line graph Donut chart Point chart	How is it distributed (by category)?
Combo chart	One of the following: One string field and two number or rate/ratio fields Two datasets with the same string field	Summary table Reference table Treemap Scatter plot Point chart	How is it distributed (by category)? How is it related?
Data clock	Two string fields	Summary table Reference table Bar chart Stacked bar chart Column chart Stacked column chart Treemap Heat chart Chord diagram Link chart Line graph	How has it changed? How is it related?
Donut chart	One string field	Unique values map Summary table Reference table KPI Bar chart Column chart Treemap Bubble chart Line graph	How is it distributed (by category)?
Heat chart	Two string fields	Summary table Reference table Bar chart Stacked bar chart Column chart Stacked column chart Treemap Chord diagram Data clock Link chart Line graph	How is it related?
Histogram	One number field	Proportional symbol map Summary table Reference table KPI Box plot	How is it distributed? What are the high values? What are the low values?
KPI	One number field	None	How is it related?
Line graph	One string field	Unique values map Summary table Reference table KPI Bar chart Column chart Treemap Bubble chart Donut chart	How is it distributed (by category)?
Link chart	Two string fields	Summary table Reference table Bar chart Stacked bar chart Column chart Stacked column chart Treemap Heat chart Chord diagram Data clock Line graph	How is it related?
Point chart	One string field and one number or rate/ratio field	Summary table Reference table KPI Bar chart Column chart Treemap Bubble chart Line graph Box plot Donut chart	How is it distributed (by category)?
Scatter plot	Two number or rate/ratio fields	Summary table Reference table KPI	How is it related?
Scatter plot matrix	Three or more number or rate/ratio fields	Summary table Reference table	How is it related?
Stacked bar chart	Two string fields	Summary table Reference table Bar chart Column chart Stacked column chart Treemap Heat chart Chord diagram Data clock Link chart Line graph	How is it distributed (by category)?
Stacked column chart	Two string fields	Summary table Reference table Bar chart Stacked bar chart Column chart Treemap Heat chart Chord diagram Data clock Link chart Line graph	How is it distributed (by category)?
Time series graph	One date/time field	Reference table	How has it changed?
Treemap	One string field	Unique values map Summary table Reference table KPI Bar chart Stacked bar chart Column chart Stacked column chart Heat chart Chord diagram Data clock Link chart Line graph Point chart	How is it distributed (by category)?

Change variables

As the data story emerges from your visualizations, you can show different data and adjust properties such as grouping your data, as well as change chart styling. Editable fields on charts are shown in gray drop-down boxes. You can choose a different field to show on one axis or both axes. Click an editable field on your chart, and choose a different field from the list.

Visualizations that summarize data, such as bar charts, time series graphs, line graphs, and summary tables allow you to choose a different statistic type. For example, you can switch from displaying the sum of sales per region to the average sales per region by using the statistic type drop-down menu.

Use the chart toolbar

Every card has a toolbar that can be used to find more information or improve the appearance of your data.


Tool	Description	Applicable charts
Layer options	The Layer options button can be used to display the Layer options pane. The options available on this pane depend on the chart type.	All
Chart statistics	The Chart statistics button can be used to display relevant statistical calculations about your data. The following statistics can be displayed for bar charts, column charts, time series graphs, and line graphs: Mean Median Upper quartile Lower quartile Custom The following statistics can be displayed for histograms: Mean Median Normal distribution The following statistics can be displayed for scatter plots: None Linear Exponential Polynomial	Bar chart, column chart, histogram, scatter plot, time series graph, line graph
Card filter	The Card filter button can be used to remove any unwanted data from your chart. Filters can be applied to all string, number, rate/ratio, and date/time fields. A card filter does not affect other cards using the same dataset. For more information, see Filter data.	All
Selection tools	Selections can be used to highlight important features. Selections on one card are reflected on any other card using the same data. The following selection tools may be available on your chart: Select Box select Invert selection For more information, see Make selections.	All except donut chart and KPI
Visualization type	The Visualization type drop-down menu shows all available card types. The drop-down list can be used to quickly change your card to a map, summary table, or another type of card. The availability of visualizations depends on what type of data is being displayed on your card.	All
Sort	The Sort option is available for most charts that use a string field. The following sort options are available: Sort ascending Sort descending Sort A to Z Sort Z to A Sort manually (available with bar and column charts)	Bar chart, column chart, line graph
Maximize	The Maximize button is used to enlarge the card. Other cards on the page will be reduced to thumbnails. The card can be returned to its previous size using the Restore down button .	All
Enable cross filters	The Enable cross filters button is used to allow filters to be created on the card using selections on other cards. Cross filters can be removed using the Disable cross filters button . For more information, see Filter data.	All
Flip card	The Flip card button displays information on the back of the card about your chart, such as a description of your analysis and a time stamp for when your data was last updated, if applicable. The back of the card also includes statistics, such as count, mean, and median. For some charts, the back of the card can be used to export the data from the card as a CSV.	All
Delete	The Delete button removes the card from your page. If you did not intend to delete your card, you can retrieve it using the Undo button.	All

Modify an axis

By default, all numeric axes in Insights are on a linear scale. One or more axis can be changed to a logarithmic scale for scatter plots, time series graphs, and line charts. Logarithmic scales are nonlinear scales that can be used to display datasets with large ranges of data values. A logarithmic scale uses logarithmic orders of magnitude to display the data at a more manageable scale. By default, Insights will use a base 10 logarithmic scale. Changing the scale of the axis does not change the value of the data, just the way it is displayed.

The scale of an axis can be changed by clicking the axis and choosing Linear or Log.

The scale of an axis can be changed by clicking the axis and choosing a scale — Left—Changing the scale of the y-axis to Log by clicking the axis and choosing the Log scale. Right—A scatter plot with the x-axis displaying data on a linear scale and the y-axis displaying data on a logarithmic scale.

Field names are used to label axes by default. To change the axis labels on a chart, use the following steps:

Click the Card options button .
Click the Edit labels button .
Click a label to highlight the text.
Type the new axis label.
Hit Enter or Return on your keyboard to make the changes go into effect.

Change the layer options

The Layer options pane can be accessed by clicking the Layer options button . The options and tabs available in the Layer options pane are dependent on the type of chart and current style.


Tab	Description	Applicable charts
Legend	The Legend tab displays the symbols on the chart along with the corresponding categories. The Legend tab is interactive, so it can be used to select features on your chart (available for unique symbols). If your chart is displayed using Unique symbols, you can change the color associated with a category by clicking the symbol and choosing a color from the palette or entering a hex value.	All except histograms
Symbology	The Symbology tab is used for the following purposes: Bar and column charts — Change the Symbol type between Single symbol and Unique symbols. Other charts that can be symbolized using unique or single symbols, such as scatter plots, must be changed using Subgroup or Color by on the x- or y-axis. Bar, column, line, and combo charts — Add value labels to the chart. Data clocks and heat charts — Change the Classification type between natural breaks, equal interval, or quantile classifications. Link charts — Change the layout of the chart between Force directed, Hierarchical, and Radial. Point charts — Add confidence intervals to your chart.	Bar chart, column chart, combo chart, data clock, heat chart, link chart, point chart
Appearance	The Appearance tab can be used to change the Symbol color for charts displayed with single symbols, such as histograms. The Symbol color can be chosen from the color palette or customized using a hex code.	Bar chart, column chart, combo chart, histogram, scatter plot, time series graph, line graph, box plot, scatter plot matrix, link chart, point chart

Copy a chart

A chart card can be duplicated on a page by activating the card (a card is active when the Action button Action is visible) and using Ctrl+C to copy the card and Ctrl+V to paste it on the page.

A chart card can be copied to a different page by dragging the card to the New page tab or to an existing page. When a chart is copied to a new page, the dataset will also be copied, if necessary, along with all of the processes used to create the chart. The dataset will not be copied if it already exists on the new page unless one of the datasets contains a dataset filter, a calculated field, or a location field created by enabling location.

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