Formatting Visualizer Charts

Customize the formatting of your charts.  For the chart in general you can:

Tip: In Dashboards 2.0 you can modify the style of axis and labels on a per-report basis. See Setting Chart Element Styles.

To apply consistent formatting for measure data across data axis labels, tooltips, and display values see Formatting Data in a Visualizer Chart. Formatting at the chart level, as described in this topic, overrides the data level formatting.

To assign a color palette to a chart

You can assign a built-in or custom color palette to the whole chart and to each measure.

Color palettes are shared across an account and are available to all spaces within an account.

Tip: Use color palettes along with dashboard themes. You can assign Visualizer palettes to themes for consistency across dashboards. See Color Reference and Applying Themes to Dashboards.

  1. Click Chart Formatting . The Chart Formatting panel opens.
  2. Click the General tab to see the palette options. Click Global and select a palette to set a color scheme for the entire chart.
  3. Click Per Measure to see measures and their current color palettes.
  4. Click a measure's palette to open a list of available palettes.
  5. Click a palette and click Back.
  6. The chart immediately updates so you can preview the colors.
  7. Click Done.

To copy and modify an existing color palette

Only the creator of a palette or the Account Administrator can modify an existing account's palettes.

  1. Click Chart Formatting . The Chart Formatting panel opens.
  2. Click the General tab to see the palette options.
  3. Click either Per Measure or Global, depending on the scope of the changes.
  4. Click Clone on the palette you want to copy and modify.
  5. Click the Edit on the cloned palette.
  6. In the Palette Editor, name the new palette.
  7. Use the Color Picker to change colors in the palette. Alternatively, you can enter the hex codes.
  8. Click Done.

To add a color palette

  1. Click Chart Formatting . The Chart Formatting panel opens.
  2. Click the General tab to see the palette options.
  3. Click either Per Measure or Global, depending on the scope of the changes.
  4. Click Add Color Palette.
  5. Name your new palette.
  6. Select either Manual or Auto.
    • For Manual palettes, use the Color Picker or enter the hex values for the colors. When you finish one color another field appears.

      As you enter the colors, the chart previews them.
      Tip: The order of the colors, from left to right, determines the default order of the colors as they are applied in charts.
    • For Auto palettes, enter the number of colors you would like in the palette, a start color, and an end color. Click Generate Palette. This generates a palette with the set number of colors with gradients between the start color and end color.
  7. When you finish your palette, click Done. The new palette displays in the Chart Formatting Color Palettes tab.

To format legends

  1. Either:
  • Hover over  the legend bar then click the Formatting icon.

    Or:
  • Click Chart Formatting then click the Legends tab.

    The Chart Formatting Legends panel opens.

  1. Toggle whether to display the legend or not.
  2. Change position of the legend.
  3. Format the text.
  4. Change the background color of the legend.
  5. Format its border.
  6. Click Done. For example:

To change axis label (alias) text

  1. Double-click the label for either the X axis or the Y axis of your chart.
  2. Type the label you would like to use and type Enter or click Check.
    Tips:
  • If you do not want to display an axis label, delete all of the text.
  • To restore a label, click Reset Alias.
  • If labels overlap each other, Visualizer may not display all of them. This is to avoid visual clutter, especially when reports resize to smaller displays.

To merge or split multiple axis

If you have a chart with multiple measures that use the same basic data types and ranges, you can merge the axis so that multiple measures use the same axis.

By default Visualizer may automatically merge some axis.

For example, Revenue and Forecast Revenue use the same type of monetary data in slightly different, but compatible, ranges.

To make the chart easier to quickly understand, you may want to merge the axis.

  1. Hover over an axis to see the Axis menu and click it.
  2. Click Merge All Axis (On Left or Right, depending on where the axis exist).

Tip: If you do not want a merged axis, hover over it, click the Axis menu and select Split Axis.

To move axis to the left or right, up or down

  1. Hover over an axis to see the Axis menu and click it.
  2. For an X axis click Move Right or Move Left. For a Y axis click Move Up or Move Down.

    Visualizer repositions the axis.

To format X axis labels

  1. Click Chart Formatting .
    The Chart Formatting panel opens.
  2. Click the X-Axis tab. The X-Axis formatting panel opens.

  3. At the top of the panel, you can toggle the X axis Off or On. When Off, it does not display on the chart.
  4. Change the font face, style, size, color, or background highlight of the X axis main label.
  5. Scroll down to change the font face, style, size, color, or background highlight of the X axis tickmark labels.
  6. Scroll down to change the color or thickness of the X axis baseline rule, or toggle it off.

    For example, a yellow XL baseline:

  7. If using a date type on the X axis, you can change the date formatting.

  8. Click Done.

To format Y axis labels

Formatting at the Y axis level overrides formatting at the data level. See Formatting Data in a Visualizer Chart.

  1. Click Chart Formatting and then click the Y-Axis tab. The Chart Formatting panel opens.
  2. You can toggle the Y axis Off or On.
  3. Change the font color, face, background highlight, size, or style of the Y axis main title.
  4. Change the font color, face, background highlight, size, or style of the Y axis tickmark labels.
  5. Format the grid lines. You can change the color and thickness of grid lines. You can also toggle them off altogether.
  6. Scroll down to format the Y axis vertical rule, or toggle it off. By default the rule is gray and the smallest thickness.

  7. Format the Y Axis Limits. By default they are set to Automatic.

    You can set them to start at zero, or manually enter the Number of Axis Ticks and the Min and Max value range.

  8. Change formatting of the Y axis data:
    • Change the Units display format. The default is take from the underlying data.
    • If appropriate, change the Suffix to percentage.
    • Set the decimal precision.
    • Choose a currency prefix.
  9. Click Done.

To change the scale of a Y axis

See To format Y axis labels. Change the Axis Limits Min and Max values.

To stack multiple measures on a bar, column, or waterfall chart

By default on bar, column, or waterfall charts, multiple measures are grouped. You can change these to stacked or percentage.

  1. Click Chart Settings.
  2. Change the Measure formatting.

 

To show display values on a bar or column chart

  1. Click Chart Settings.
    The Chart Settings list shows the Display Values toggles.
  2. Toggle the Display Values option. The value of the measure displays at the end of the bars in a column or bar chart. If you have a color attribute you can display the segment values.

To format display values

Formatting at the display values level overrides formatting at the data level. See Formatting Data in a Visualizer Chart.

Tip: Some display values do not apply to charts that use percentage values, such as pie, donut, or semi-donut charts. For example, units, suffix, and currency do not apply to a pie chart, but would apply to a bar chart.

  1. Click Chart Formatting and then click the Display Values tab.
  2. The Chart Formatting panel opens. You can set display values for all measures and/or for each measure.
  3. Click All Display Values.

    • Specify the font color, face, highlight, size, and style to apply to the entire chart.
    • Enable Text Background, color, and transparency.
    • Specify the units, suffix, decimal precision, and currency sign to apply to the entire chart.
    • Click Back.
  4. Click a measure to apply formatting specific to the measure.
    • Specify the units, suffix, decimal precision, and currency sign to apply to the measure.
    • Tip: You cannot specify font formats for each measure. Use All Display Values to specify font formatting.
    • Click Back.
  5. Iterate for each measure.
  6. Click Done.

To format tooltips

Formatting at the tooltip level overrides formatting at the data level. See Formatting Data in a Visualizer Chart.

You can change the font style, units, suffix, decimal precision, and currency symbol used in tooltips.

Tip: By default all tooltips show a black background that cannot be changed.

  1. Click Chart Formatting then click the Tooltips tab.
    The Chart Formatting Tooltips panel opens.
    • If there is only one measure, all of its formatting options display.
    • If there are multiple measures, text formatting for all of them together, for consistency, is at the top. Later you can select individual measures to format the other items.
  1. Check which measures and attributes display in the tooltip.   
  2. Change the font color, face, background highlight, size, or style of the tooltip text.

    The tooltip formatting updates. For example:

  3. Format the data:
    • Change the Units. The default is take from the underlying data. The numbering style changes based on the Unit.
    • If appropriate, change the Suffix to percentage.
    • Set the decimal display.
    • Choose a currency prefix.
  4. Click Done.

Tip: To change the measures that display in a tooltip see Adding Tooltips and Hiding Columns.

To apply conditional formatting

  1. Create a chart that includes a color attribute.
  2. Click Chart Formatting . The Chart Formatting panel opens.
  3. Click the Conditional tab. The Basic formatting tab opens. By default the conditional is toggled on.
  4. Select color overrides. For example, conditions for a range of Revenue.


    For another example, conditions when using a time dimension.

  5. Optionally, click the Advanced tab for expression-based conditional formatting. See Supported Functions and Operators in Visualizer Expressions.
    When you are done, click Apply.
  6. Click Done.
    Tip: You can toggle the condition off without changing all of the settings.

To change a waterfall chart from vertical to horizontal

By default a waterfall chart has a vertical orientation. To change it to horizontal, click Chart Settings and toggle the Horizontal Waterfall tab.

Learn More

Visualizer Report Basics

Working with Chart Reports