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My Top 3 Most Useful Charts
Power BI offers dozens of chart types, but in practice, most dashboards rely on just a handful of visuals that consistently communicate information clearly.
Simple charts get used. Complicated charts get ignored.
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Here are the three chart types I use most often in real-world dashboards.
1. Bar Charts
Bar charts are the most versatile and widely used chart type. They're best for comparing values across categories.
Common use cases:
- Sales by region
- Revenue by product
- Customers by segment
Bar charts make it easy to see differences at a glance and are intuitive for almost everyone viewing a dashboard.
2. Line Charts
Line charts are the best choice for time-based data. They show trends, growth, and changes over time.
Common use cases:
- Monthly revenue trends
- Daily website traffic
- Year-over-year performance
Line charts help viewers understand direction and movement, not just individual values.
3. Cards and KPIs
Cards and KPI visuals highlight important numbers. They're best for totals, averages, percentages, and key performance indicators.
Common use cases:
- Total revenue
- Customer count
- Conversion rate
- Year-to-date sales
These visuals are usually placed at the top of a dashboard to immediately communicate the most important metrics.
Why These Charts Matter
These three chart types cover most real-world dashboard needs:
- Bar charts for comparing categories
- Line charts for tracking performance over time
- Cards for highlighting key metrics quickly
If you master these charts, you can build clear and effective dashboards without relying on overly complex visuals. The fancier chart types we covered in this chapter are useful in specific situations, but these three are your bread and butter.
When in doubt, use a bar chart. Seriously.