How To Add Charts And Graphs To WordPress

You’re probably familiar with the saying “a picture is worth a thousand words.” This is certainly true when you’re trying to present or explain complex data.

Using charts and graphs is great for breaking up long passage of text, and making statistical data and information more easily digestible.

You can use tables to present data, but if you want people to try and make sense of complex information with numbers, percentages or relationships easily, then graphs and charts are perfect for helping them interpret your data.

Charts and graphs help present complex data so your audience can more easily understand it!

If you want to learn how to display information visually and dynamically on your WordPress site like graphs and charts, this step-by-step tutorial will show you exactly how to create and add attractive and updatable graphs and charts to your WordPress pages that:

• Your web visitors can engage with
• Lets you upload data from your computer or a web-based data source
• Is responsive for mobile browsing

If you are displaying visual data like bar charts, comparison graphs or trending graphs containing static information (e.g. historical data), an easier way to present this information is to create your charts or graphs using an image editing application, convert these into jpg or png files and then simply insert the files and an image into your pages or posts.

Use WordPress Chart & Graph Plugins

If you want to embed dynamic bar charts and pie graphs into WordPress with no coding skills required, the easiest way to do this is to use a plugin.

Fortunately, there is a great free plugin for WordPress sites that is simple to install, easy-to-use and allows you to not only create colorful and dynamic graphs and charts, it also lets you populate your charts and graphs with updateable data.

Visualizer Plugin For WordPress

Visualizer URL

You can install the plugin in your WordPress dashboard (we will show you how to do this further down the page), or access and download the WordPress Visualizer plugin from the link below:

http://wordpress.org/plugins/visualizer

Visualizer Plugin Description

Visualizer is a simple, easy to use and powerful plugin for WordPress that lets you create, manage and embed attractive and dynamic charts and graphs into your WordPress posts and pages in just a few simple steps.

WordPress Visualizer uses Google Visualization API to render charts, which support cross-browser compatibility (adopting VML for older IE versions) and cross-platform portability to iOS and new Android releases, and are based on pure HTML5/SVG technology (adopting VML for old IE versions), so no extra plugins or add-ons are required.

The plugin also comes with a variety of built-in optimized for your data visualization needs, including:

• Line chart
• Area chart
• Bar chart
• Column chart
• Pie chart
• Geo chart
• Gauge chart
• Candlestick chart
• Scatter chart

Visualizer is a flexible and customizable plugin, allowing you to use Google Chart Tools with their default setting, or configure an extensive set of options to match your site’s design. Several options are available for each chart that allow you to customize their look.

Additionally, charts are rendered using HTML5/SVG technology to provide cross-browser compatibility (including VML for older IE versions) and cross platform portability to iPhones, iPads and Android devices. Your blog or site visitors can see your charts and graphs on their mobile web browsers without requiring the installation of extra plugins.

Plugin Installation

From your WP administration area, select Plugins > Add New from the navigation sidebar menu …

In the Add Plugins screen type in search for “visualizer” and hit enter …

Locate the plugin in the search results section and click the “Install Now” button …

Click OK to go ahead …

Activate the plugin …

You can also activate the plugin in the Plugins section …

Once the plugin has been activated, click on Library …

You can get to the plugin’s ‘library’ screen by selecting Media > Visualizer Library in your admin menu …

This brings up the plugin’s Visualizer Library settings …

After installing the plugin, this section will be empty.

The next step is to add the charts and graphs to your library that you plan to display in your pages or posts.

How To Configure The Plugin

To add a new chart or graph to the plugin’s library, click on Add New …

An image gallery displaying all of the default types of charts available will load on your screen.

Select the type of chart or graph you would like to create and click on the ‘Next’ button …

The graph/chart type will open up in a lightbox.

The next step is to upload a CSV file that contains the data you would like your chart or graph to be populated with …

When creating your CSV data file, make sure that:

• Your first row contains the column headings.
• The second row includes the series type (e.g. string, date, etc.)

The screenshot below shows how to format your data as per the requirements above …

If you are unsure about how to format your CSV file, simply use the sample supplied with the plugin.

Once you have created your CSV file, select the data source (‘From Computer’ or ‘From Web’) in the ‘Upload CSV File’ section.

Upload CSV File From Computer

To upload the CSV file from your hard drive select ‘From Computer‘ …

Locate and select your data file and then click on ‘Open‘ …

The plugin imports your data from the CSV file and displays it using the graph/chart type you have previously chosen …

Upload CSV File From The Web

For a step-by-step tutorial that shows you how to create, save and publish data to a Visualizer chart or graph using Google Spreadsheet, go here:

• How To Populate Data Using Google Spreadsheet

After importing the data, check that all of your information is correct (if not, click on the ‘Back’ button and reupload a new data file with the correct data), and click ‘Next‘ …

Depending on the chart or graph type you have chosen, the plugin displays a range of customization settings and options …

Visualizer gives you total control of your information, and updates your display in real time …

For example, the pie chart offers various configurable options, including:

• General Settings – Configure chart title settings, font styles, tooltip, and legend.
• Pie Settings – Create 3D pie charts, draw slices counterclockwise, set the text content displayed on the slice, create a “donut” pie chart, rotate the chart’s “start” angle and set the slice border color.
• Residue Settings – Set the ‘Visibility Threshold’ (the slice relative part, below which a slice will not show individually.), ‘Residual Slice Label’ (the label for the combination slice that holds all slices below slice visibility threshold, e.g. “Other”), and ‘Residue Slice Color’.
• Slice Settings – Customize the ‘Slice Offset’ (how far to separate a slice from the rest of the pie), and ‘Slice Color’.
• Layout & Chart Area – Configure the layout (total size of chart) including the width and height of the chart as a number of percentage, background color for the main area of the chart and the chart border width and color, and the placement and size of the chart area (where the chart itself is drawn, excluding axis and legends).

Once you’re happy with the look of your chart or graph, click on the ‘Create Chart’ button …

Your new graph or chart will now be added to your Visualizer ‘Library’ …

Note that every new element is given a unique ID displayed as a shortcode. As you will see very soon, this lets you embed graphs and charts into your pages easily and quickly …

Graphs and charts added to the Visualizer Library can be accessed by type …

After an item has been added to the ‘Visualizer Library’, you can edit its details, duplicate it, or delete it …

Visualizer Usage

After you have created a chart or graph and added it to the Visualizer Library, it’s very easy to insert it into a post or page.

First, create a new post or page (or open an existing one) …

Next, place your mouse cursor where you would like to insert your visual element into your content and click on the ‘Add Media‘ button …

Click on ‘Visualizations‘ …

Select the element you want to insert into your content and click the “insert” icon …

This inserts a shortcode into your content …

Once you have finished adding your item, click on Publish to publish (or update) your post or page …

After the post has been published, click ‘View post’ to see the result …

You will see your item in where you’ve inserted the shortcode …

As mentioned earlier, Visualizer also displays responsive elements for mobile users …

As you can see, the Visualizer plugin allows you to add and customize dynamic charts and graphs in your content. You can edit your data and the changes will automatically be reflected throughout your website. This makes adding interactive graph data in WordPress very easy.

The plugin developers have created a series of step-by-step tutorials you can use to learn how to edit, customize and use the plugin.

For tutorials on editing, cloning, deleting and adding data to your charts, visit the website below:

• WordPress Visualizer – Additional Tutorials

Congratulations! Now you know how to insert eye-catching and dynamic pie charts and graphs into your WordPress posts and pages with WordPress Visualizer.

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