Bar chart race
Updated 5 years ago to v7.0.1 by Flourish team
How to use this template
What's it for?
Use this template to visualise the changing fortunes of people or groups in competition with each other, like political candidates, country populations or football teams.
How to get started
- The first thing you need is a CSV or Excel file of your data.
- You need to make sure that there’s a row for each participant in the race – like a candidate or a football team. Use the first column to populate with the participants’ names. Each other column is a “stage” of the race – like a specific date, week or years.
- Here's an example:
name Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Lance Armstrong 0 4 7 Chris Hoyle 0 3 6
Not sure how to upload your data to Flourish? See our handy guide
Adding captions
You can use the second data sheet to create captions that should appear over the top of the chart at the specified times.
Credits
Bar chart template: Created by the Flourish team. Want to see additional features? Let us know at support@flourish.studio.
Data: Example data show urban population by nation and continent, from the World Bank.
API information
This section documents API usage specific to this template, so for an introduction we suggest you refer to the generic API documentation instead.
template: @flourish/bar-chart-race
version: 7
Template data
There are three different formats in which you can supply data to this template. The most convenient for you to use likely depends on the source of your data, as described below.
1. Array of arrays, and a bindings object
You can supply arrays of arrays to opts.data, which might look
like:
{
data: {
data: [
[ "DataColumn1Value1", "DataColumn2Value1",
[ "DataColumn1Value2", "DataColumn2Value2",
[ "DataColumn1Value3", "DataColumn2Value3",
...
],
captions: [
[ "CaptionsColumn1Value1", "CaptionsColumn2Value1",
[ "CaptionsColumn1Value2", "CaptionsColumn2Value2",
[ "CaptionsColumn1Value3", "CaptionsColumn2Value3",
...
]
}
}
where each array of arrays represents the rows in a data sheet.
To tell the API how the values from each column should be
associated with the keys that the template is expecting, you must also supply
an object attached to opts.bindings. (The meanings of the
keys in the bindings object are documented
below.) The minimal bindings you can
supply for this template are as shown in this example:
{
template: "@flourish/bar-chart-race",
version: "7",
bindings: {
data: {
label: 0, // index of a column in your data
},
captions: {
}
},
data: {
data: [
[ "DataColumn1Value1", "DataColumn2Value1",
[ "DataColumn1Value2", "DataColumn2Value2",
[ "DataColumn1Value3", "DataColumn2Value3",
...
],
captions: [
[ "CaptionsColumn1Value1", "CaptionsColumn2Value1",
[ "CaptionsColumn1Value2", "CaptionsColumn2Value2",
[ "CaptionsColumn1Value3", "CaptionsColumn2Value3",
...
]
}
}
All possible bindings that you can supply are shown in this example:
{
template: "@flourish/bar-chart-race",
version: "7",
bindings: {
data: {
label: 0, // index of a column in your data
values: [1, 2, ...], // index(es) of column(s) in your data
category: 3, // index of a column in your data
image: 4, // index of a column in your data
},
captions: {
from: 0, // index of a column in your data
to: 1, // index of a column in your data
text: 2, // index of a column in your data
}
},
data: {
data: [
[ "DataColumn1Value1", "DataColumn2Value1",
[ "DataColumn1Value2", "DataColumn2Value2",
[ "DataColumn1Value3", "DataColumn2Value3",
...
],
captions: [
[ "CaptionsColumn1Value1", "CaptionsColumn2Value1",
[ "CaptionsColumn1Value2", "CaptionsColumn2Value2",
[ "CaptionsColumn1Value3", "CaptionsColumn2Value3",
...
]
}
}
2. Array of objects with arbitrary keys, and a bindings object
This format is most likely useful when you have data from an external source,
such as CSV data loaded from d3-dsv.
You should supply this attached to the opts.data, which might look
like:
{
data: [
{ "DataHeader1": ..., "DataHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "DataHeader1": ..., "DataHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "DataHeader1": ..., "DataHeader2": ..., ... },
...
],
captions: [
{ "CaptionsHeader1": ..., "CaptionsHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "CaptionsHeader1": ..., "CaptionsHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "CaptionsHeader1": ..., "CaptionsHeader2": ..., ... },
...
]
}
... but with the keys being the column headers from your
source data instead. You must also supply an object attached to
opts.bindings. The minimal bindings you can
supply for this template are as shown in this example:
{
template: "@flourish/bar-chart-race",
version: "7",
bindings: {
data: {
label: "DataHeader1",
},
captions: {
}
},
data: {
data: [
{ "DataHeader1": ..., "DataHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "DataHeader1": ..., "DataHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "DataHeader1": ..., "DataHeader2": ..., ... },
...
],
captions: [
{ "CaptionsHeader1": ..., "CaptionsHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "CaptionsHeader1": ..., "CaptionsHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "CaptionsHeader1": ..., "CaptionsHeader2": ..., ... },
...
]
}
}
All possible bindings that you can supply are shown in this example:
{
template: "@flourish/bar-chart-race",
version: "7",
bindings: {
data: {
label: "DataHeader1",
values: ["DataHeader2", "DataHeader3", ...],
category: "DataHeader4",
image: "DataHeader5",
},
captions: {
from: "CaptionsHeader1",
to: "CaptionsHeader2",
text: "CaptionsHeader3",
}
},
data: {
data: [
{ "DataHeader1": ..., "DataHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "DataHeader1": ..., "DataHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "DataHeader1": ..., "DataHeader2": ..., ... },
...
],
captions: [
{ "CaptionsHeader1": ..., "CaptionsHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "CaptionsHeader1": ..., "CaptionsHeader2": ..., ... },
{ "CaptionsHeader1": ..., "CaptionsHeader2": ..., ... },
...
]
}
}
(As before, the keys containing "Header" would be replaced by column names from your data source.)
3. Array of objects with template-defined keys
There is an alternative format you can use, which is likely to be easier to
use if your data is not from a spreadsheet source. With this alternative format
you supply your data to the template as
an array of objects, attached to opts.data, where the keys must
be those used by the template, as documented below. In this case
there is no need to supply a bindings object, since the key names are already
those expected by the template. The required properties in the data
object are as follows (scroll down for a
description of what each property is):
{
template: "@flourish/bar-chart-race",
version: "7",
data: {
data: [
{
label: ...,
values: [...]
},
...
]
},
...
}
And the full list of all possible properties is as follows:
{
template: "@flourish/bar-chart-race",
version: "7",
data: {
data: [
{
label: ...,
values: [...],
category: ...,
image: ...
},
...
],
captions: [
{
from: ...,
to: ...,
text: ...
},
...
]
},
...
}
Meanings of the template data keys:
- data.label: A column containing the names of the bars, e.g. countries or people
- data.values: Multiple columns of numbers, each column representing a point in time
- data.category: Optional category column to colour the bars
- data.image: Optional column with URLs of images
- captions.from: Must match the column headers in the main data sheet
- captions.to: Must match the column headers in the main data sheet
- captions.text: Text or HTML to show
Template settings
Options for opts.state.
Bars
number_of_bars number
Number. Min: 1
sort_enabled boolean
Sorting. Allowed values:
sort_ascending boolean
Default sort mode. Allowed values:
height_mode string
Mode. Allowed values:
bar_height number
Height. Height of the bar; expressed as multiple of page font size to make it device dependent Max: 99
padding_top number
Top.
padding_right number
Right.
padding_bottom number
Bottom.
padding_left number
Left.
bar_margin number
Between bars (%). Max: 99
Labels & images
label_max_size number
Max font size.
label_color_in color
Label colour.
label_color_out color
Value colour.
label_mode string
Labels mode. Allowed values:
label_axis_width number
Space for labels.
image_height number
Height. As a % of bar height
image_width number
Width. As a % of bar height
image_margin_right number
Margin right. As a % of bar height
image_scale string
Image sizing. Allowed values:
image_circle boolean
Shape. Allowed values:
counter boolean
Show current time.
counter_font_size number
Size (% of screen).
counter_color color
Colour.
totaliser boolean
Show total. Shows the sum of all the values in the data sheet for the current time, including any bars not currently visible in the chart.
totaliser_font_size number
Size (% of screen).
totaliser_color color
Colour.
totaliser_label string
Label.
Colours
color.scale_type string
Scale type. Allowed values:
color.categorical_type string
Allowed values:
- palette (Palette)
- generated (Generated)
color.categorical_palette colors
Palette.
color.categorical_extend boolean
Auto-extend. Automatically generate additional colours when needed to avoid the palette colours being used more than once.
color.categorical_seed_color color
Seed color. Initial color in generated sequence (avoid shades of grey).
color.categorical_rotation_angle number
Hue rotation angle. Angle, in degrees, between one generated colour and the next. The default value, ~360/(Golden ratio), ensures adjacent hues are not too similar. Max: 360
color.categorical_color_space string
Allowed values:
- hcl (HCL)
- hsl (HSL)
color.categorical_custom_palette text
Custom overrides. Type the name of the entity whose colour you want to set, a colon and then a colour (using a name, hex-code or rgb declaration). Multiple colours can be set using multiple lines. For example:
Party 1: red
Party 2: #4455AA
Party 3: rgb(30,168,26)
color.sequential_palette string
Palette. Allowed values:
color.sequential_custom_min color
Minimum color.
color.sequential_custom_max color
Maximum color.
color.sequential_color_space string
Allowed values:
- rgb (RGB)
- lab (LAB)
- hcl (HCL)
- hsl (HSL)
color.sequential_reverse boolean
Reverse scale.
color.diverging_palette string
Palette. Allowed values:
color.diverging_custom_min color
Minimum color.
color.diverging_custom_mid color
Midpoint color.
color.diverging_custom_max color
Maximum color.
color.diverging_color_space string
Allowed values:
- rgb (RGB)
- lab (LAB)
- hcl (HCL)
- hsl (HSL)
color.diverging_reverse boolean
Reverse scale.
bar_opacity number
Bar opacity. Max: 1
Captions
caption_font_size number
Caption font size. In rems – multiples of the base font size
caption_padding number
Inner margin. In rems – multiples of the base font size
caption_background_color color
Background.
caption_border_color color
Border.
caption_opacity number
Opacity. Max: 1
caption_text_color color
Text.
caption_text_align string
Align. Allowed values:
caption_mode string
Content mode. In “Text with colours” mode, any phrases matching category names will be automatically coloured. In HTML mode no colours will be applied, but you can include any html in the data sheet to add images etc, etc. Allowed values:
caption_position string
Position. Allowed values:
Controls
replay_control boolean
Show replay control.
replay_control_text string
Label.
sort_control boolean
Show sort control.
sort_descending_text string
“Highest” label.
sort_ascending_text string
“Lowest” label.
Legend
legend.show_legend boolean
Allowed values:
- true (Enabled)
- false (Disabled)
legend.text_color color
Color.
legend.text_size number
Size.
legend.title string
Title.
legend.title_weight string
Weight. Allowed values:
legend.swatch_width number
Width.
legend.swatch_height number
Height.
legend.swatch_radius number
Roundness. The radius of the corners of the swatch (in pixels)
legend.orientation string
Orientation. Allowed values:
text_legend string
Allowed values:
- auto (Auto)
- custom (Custom)
- off (Off)
text_legend_title boolean
Title.
text_legend_subtitle boolean
Subtitle.
text_legend_bold boolean
Bold. If checked, always use bold for coloured items
Axis
axis_color color
Color.
axis_text_color color
Text color.
scale_type string
Type. The dynamic scale type sets a dynamix x-axis that will animate with the chart. The fixed or custom scale type sets a fixed maximum value on the x-axis. Allowed values:
scale_max number
Max.
Animation
animation_duration number
Animation duration. The duration in seconds of each time step
Number formatting
localization.input_decimal_separator string
Decimal separator in data sheet. Used for interpreting your data. Only change if data is not displaying on the chart as expected. Allowed values:
localization.output_separators string
Number format to display. How the numbers should appear on chart labels Allowed values:
blank_cells string
How to handle blank/invalid cells. “Interpolate” fills the gaps between the last and next valid values Allowed values:
value_format.prefix string
Prefix. Text to place in front of number
value_format.suffix string
Suffix. Text to place after number
value_format.n_dec number
Decimal places. Use negative integers to round to positive powers of ten (eg -2 rounds to the nearest 100) Min: -10 Max: 10
value_format.strip_zeros boolean
Remove trailing zeros.
value_format.strip_separator boolean
Hide thousands separator below 10,000. Turn off if you want four-digit numbers to include a separator, e.g. “1,234” rather than “1234”.
value_format.transform_labels boolean
Multiply/divide values.
value_format.transform string
Allowed values:
- multiply (Multiply by)
- divide (Divide by)
- exponentiate (×10 to the power of)
value_format.multiply_divide_constant number
value_format.exponentiate_constant number
Layout
layout.body_font font
Font.
layout.max_width number
Maximum width. Leave blank to stretch to container width Min: 50
layout.background_color_enabled boolean
Color. Allowed values:
layout.background_image_enabled boolean
Image. Allowed values:
layout.background_color color
Color.
layout.background_image_src url
Image URL.
layout.background_image_size string
Size. Allowed values:
layout.background_image_position string
Position. Allowed values:
layout.layout_order string
Layout order. Allowed values:
layout.space_between_sections string
Space between sections. Allowed values:
layout.space_between_sections_custom number
Custom. Max: 100
layout.margin_top number
Top.
layout.margin_right number
Right.
layout.margin_bottom number
Bottom.
layout.margin_left number
Left.
layout.border.enabled boolean
Show borders around visualisation.
layout.border.top.width number
Top.
layout.border.top.style string
Style. Allowed values:
layout.border.top.color color
Color.
layout.border.right.width number
Right.
layout.border.right.style string
Style. Allowed values:
layout.border.right.color color
Color.
layout.border.bottom.width number
Bottom.
layout.border.bottom.style string
Style. Allowed values:
layout.border.bottom.color color
Color.
layout.border.left.width number
Left.
layout.border.left.style string
Style. Allowed values:
layout.border.left.color color
Color.
Header
layout.header_align string
Alignment. Allowed values:
layout.title string
layout.title_styling boolean
Styling.
layout.title_size string
Size. Allowed values:
layout.title_size_custom number
Custom. Specify a custom responsive font size. Best results will be with values between 1.2 and 3
layout.title_weight string
Weight. Allowed values:
layout.title_color color
Color.
layout.title_line_height number
Line height. Max: 3
layout.title_space_above string
Space above. Allowed values:
layout.title_space_above_custom number
Custom. Max: 100
layout.subtitle string
layout.subtitle_styling boolean
Styling.
layout.subtitle_size string
Size. Allowed values:
layout.subtitle_size_custom number
Custom. Specify a custom responsive font size. Best results will be with values between 1.2 and 3
layout.subtitle_weight string
Weight. Allowed values:
layout.subtitle_color color
Color.
layout.subtitle_line_height number
Line height. Max: 3
layout.subtitle_space_above string
Space above. Allowed values:
layout.subtitle_space_above_custom number
Custom. Max: 100
layout.text string
layout.text_styling boolean
Styling.
layout.text_size string
Size. Allowed values:
layout.text_size_custom number
Custom. Specify a custom responsive font size. Best results will be with values between 1.2 and 3
layout.text_weight string
Weight. Allowed values:
layout.text_color color
Color.
layout.text_line_height number
Line height. Max: 3
layout.text_space_above string
Space above. Allowed values:
layout.text_space_above_custom number
Custom. Max: 100
layout.header_border string
Allowed values:
- top (Top)
- bottom (Bottom)
- none (None)
layout.header_border_width number
Width.
layout.header_border_color color
Color.
layout.header_border_style string
Style. Allowed values:
layout.header_logo_enabled boolean
Allowed values:
- true (Enabled)
- false (Disabled)
layout.header_logo_src url
URL.
layout.header_logo_height number
Height.
layout.header_logo_align string
Align. Align logo inside header or outer visualisation container Allowed values:
layout.header_logo_position_inside string
Position. Allowed values:
layout.header_logo_position_outside string
Position. Allowed values:
layout.header_logo_margin_top number
Top.
layout.header_logo_margin_right number
Right.
layout.header_logo_margin_bottom number
Bottom.
layout.header_logo_margin_left number
Left.
Footer
layout.source_name string
Source name.
layout.source_url string
Source url.
layout.multiple_sources boolean
Multiple sources.
layout.source_name_2 string
Source name.
layout.source_url_2 string
Source url.
layout.source_name_3 string
Source name.
layout.source_url_3 string
Source url.
layout.source_label string
Source label.
layout.footer_note string
Note.
layout.footer_text_size number
Size.
layout.footer_text_color color
Color.
layout.footer_align string
Alignment. Allowed values:
layout.footer_logo_enabled boolean
Allowed values:
- true (Enabled)
- false (Disabled)
layout.footer_logo_src url
Image.
layout.footer_logo_link_url string
Link.
layout.footer_logo_height number
Height.
layout.footer_logo_margin number
Margin.
layout.footer_logo_order string
Position. Allowed values:
layout.footer_align_vertical string
V. align. Allowed values:
layout.footer_border string
Allowed values:
- top (Top)
- bottom (Bottom)
- none (None)
layout.footer_border_width number
Width.
layout.footer_border_color color
Color.
layout.footer_border_style string
Style. Allowed values:
