Visualizations That Work
You choose the right visual for the right question.
Why this lesson matters
Power BI offers dozens of visuals: bar charts, line charts, donuts, treemaps, maps, waterfalls... But more choice doesn't mean better. The wrong visual can distort your message or make it unreadable.
In this lesson you'll learn which visual to choose when, and which ones you're better off avoiding.
The golden rule: function decides the visual
Choose based on what you want to show, never on "what looks nice":
| Goal | Best visual | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Comparing categories | Bar chart (horizontal) | Lengths are easier to compare accurately than angles |
| Trend over time | Line chart | Shows direction and pattern at a glance |
| Showing one number (KPI) | Card or KPI visual | Instantly readable, no interpretation needed |
| Part of a whole (2-3 parts) | Donut or 100% stacked | Only with few segments and big differences |
| Detail per row | Table or Matrix | When exact numbers matter |
| Comparison with a target | KPI visual or Gauge | Shows actual vs. target |
| Waterfall (build-up/breakdown) | Waterfall chart | P&L build-up, bridge analysis |
You want to show the split of revenue across 5 product categories. Which visual do you choose?
Visuals for finance
As a financial you use a limited set of visuals. These are the most common:
KPI cards, the starting point
Every report page starts with 3-5 KPI cards at the top:
- Revenue (vs. last year, with % difference)
- Margin (with colour indication: green/red)
- Number of customers
- Average order value
Use conditional formatting on your cards: green if it's better than last year, red if it's worse. That way your manager sees in 2 seconds whether things are going well or badly.
Line chart, trends
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Use for:
- Revenue per month across several years
- Cash flow trend
- Forecast vs actuals
Tip: add a constant line for budget or target.
Bar chart, comparisons
Use for:
- Revenue per region or per product category
- Top 10 customers
- Budget vs actuals per department
Horizontal is nearly always better than vertical, the labels are readable without tilting.
Matrix, the pivot table of Power BI
Use for:
- P&L per month with subtotals
- Revenue per region × per quarter
- Any situation where you have both rows and columns
Waterfall, build-up and breakdown
Perfect for:
- P&L bridge (revenue → costs → EBITDA → net)
- Variance analysis (budget vs actuals per category)
Visuals you're better off avoiding
| Visual | Problem | Better alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Pie chart | Angles are hard to compare, unreadable above 5 segments | Bar chart |
| 3D charts | Distort proportions, look unprofessional | 2D version |
| Gauge | Takes up a lot of space for little information | KPI card with % |
| Treemap | Hard to read with many categories | Bar chart + drill |
| Filled map | Bigger countries look more important (but may have less revenue) | Table with heatmap |
The most common mistake in finance reports: too many different visual types on one page. Pick 2-3 types and stay consistent. A report with only bar charts, line charts and cards is stronger than one with 8 different visual types.
Formatting that makes the difference
Colour
- Use at most 3-4 colours per report
- One accent colour for the most important data
- Grey for context/background
- Green/red only for good/bad (in moderation)
Sorting
- Always sort from large to small (or the other way round), never alphabetically
- Exception: time series (always chronological)
Labels
- Add data labels to the most important data points only
- Use abbreviations for large numbers: €1.2M instead of €1,200,000
You have a bar chart with 8 categories. The bars are sorted alphabetically. What's the problem?
You're building a P&L overview in Power BI. You have: Revenue, Costs, Gross profit, Overhead, EBITDA. Which visual shows the build-up most clearly?
- Choose visuals based on function, never on looks
- Finance essentials: KPI cards, line chart, bar chart, matrix, waterfall
- Avoid: pie charts (above 3 segments), 3D, gauges
- At most 3-4 colours, sort by value, use abbreviations
- Stay consistent, 2-3 visual types per page is enough
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