How To Add Charts And Graphs To WordPress
You’ve no doubt heard the adage “a picture is worth a thousand words.” This certainly applies when you’re trying to present or explain complex information.
Charts and graphs can help to make technical or statistical data simpler to digest.
You can present data using tables, but if you want your audience to try and interpret complex data with figures, trends and relationships more easily, then graphs and charts let you present your information in a meaningful and intelligent way that can be quickly and easily processed.
Graphs and charts help present complex data so people can more easily understand it!
If you want to learn how to present dynamic visual content on your WordPress site like graphs and charts, this tutorial will show you exactly how to create and add colorful and interactive graphs and charts to your posts and pages that:
- Your web visitors can engage with
- Lets you upload chart or graph data from your computer or an online source of data
- Will dynamically resize for viewing on mobile devices
If you plan to display visual data like bar charts, comparison data or trending graphs containing static information (e.g. historical data), an easier option is to create the graphs or charts using a desktop application, convert these into images and then simply add your image files to your post or page.
Use WordPress Chart & Graph Plugins
If you want to easily create interactive bars and pie graphs in your WordPress posts with no coding skills required, the easiest way to do this is to use a plugin.
Fortunately, there is a WordPress plugin that is simple to install, easy-to-use and allows you to not only create appealing and interactive graphs and charts, it also lets you populate your charts and graphs with updatable information.
WP Plugin: Visualizer
Visualizer URL
You can install the plugin in your WP dashboard (see a little further down the page), or download WP Visualizer the WordPress plugin directory using the link below:
http://wordpress.org/plugins/visualizer
Visualizer Plugin Description
WP Visualizer is a simple, easy to use and powerful tool that lets you create, manage and embed stunning and dynamic charts into your WordPress posts and pages with just a few mouse clicks.
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 additional components are needed.
WordPress Visualizer also contains a variety of built-in that are optimized to address all 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 also flexible and customizable, allowing you to use Google Chart Tools with their default setting, or configure an extensive set of options to match your site’s design. Various options are available for each chart that let you fully customize their look and feel.
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 visitors can see your charts and graphs on their mobile browsers without requiring the installation of extra plugins.
How To Install Visualizer
Inside your WP dashboard, select Plugins > Add New from the main menu …
In the Add Plugins page type in search for “visualizer” and hit enter …
Locate Visualizer in the search results area and click Install Now …
Click OK to proceed …
Activate the plugin after installing it …
You can also activate the plugin in the Plugins section …
After the plugin has been activated, click on Library …
You can get to the plugin’s ‘library’ screen by choosing Media > Visualizer Library from your admin menu …
This takes you to the plugin’s Visualizer Library options screen …
After installing the plugin, the library contains no charts.
The next step is to add add charts and graphs to your plugin library.
How To Configure The Plugin
To add a new graph or chart to the library, click on the Add New button …
A page will load in your screen displaying all of the types of graphs and charts available.
Select the type of chart or graph you would like to create and click on the ‘Next’ button …
Your graph/chart type will open up in a new window.
The next step is to upload a CSV file containing your data …
When creating your CSV data file, ensure that:
- Your first row contains the column headings.
- Your second row includes the series type (e.g. string, timeofday, etc.)
The screenshot below shows how to format your data …
If you are not sure how to format your data CSV, simply use the sample CSV file provided with the plugin.
Once you have completed this step, select the data source (‘From Computer’ or ‘From Web’) in the ‘Upload CSV File’ section.
Upload CSV File From Computer
To upload your CSV file from your computer select ‘From Computer‘ …
Locate and select your file and click on ‘Open‘ …
The plugin imports the 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 tutorial that shows you how to create, save and publish data to a Visualizer chart or graph using Google Spreadsheet, go here:
After importing the data, make sure that all of the information is correct (if not, click on the ‘Back’ button and reupload a new data file with the right data), and then click ‘Next‘ …
Depending on the chart or graph type you have picked, the plugin will display a number of customization settings and options …
The plugin gives you full control of your information, and updates your display in real time …
For example, the pie chart offers various configurable options, such as:
- General Settings – Configure settings for the chart’s title, 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 are happy with the look of your chart or graph, click Create Chart …
The chart or graph will be added to the ‘Visualizer Library’ section …
Note that every element is given a unique ID displayed as a shortcode. As you will see very soon, this allows you to add graphs and charts to your WordPress pages very easily …
Graphs and charts added to the Visualizer Library can easily be accessed by their type …
After a graph or chart has been added to the ‘Visualizer Library’, you can edit its details, duplicate it, or trash it …
Visualizer Usage
Once you have created a chart or graph and added it to the Library, adding it to a post is very simple.
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 Add Media …
Click on ‘Visualizations‘ …
Select the element you want to add to your content and click on the “insert” icon …
This will place a shortcode into your content …
After you have finished adding the element, click on Publish to publish (or update) your page or post …
After publishing your page/post, click ‘View post’ to see the results …
Your element will display in the content …
As mentioned earlier, the plugin also displays responsive visual elements for mobile browsing …
As you can see, Visualizer allows you to add and customize dynamic charts and graphs in your content. You can modify your data and your changes will automatically be reflected wherever you have inserted your charts, graphs, comparison bars , etc. in your website. This makes adding interactive chart information in WordPress very efficient.
The developers of this plugin have created a number of step-by-step tutorials you can refer to for ways to edit, customize and use the Visualizer plugin for WordPress.
For additional tutorials on editing, cloning, deleting and adding data to your charts, go to the site below:
Congratulations! Now you know how to easily create stunning and dynamic bar charts and graphs in WordPress.
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