Reveal important trends and patterns with an easy to read stream graph
Stream graphs are particularly good at representing high-volume data sets and showing trends and patterns over time. For example, they are very useful when it comes to highlighting seasonal or periodic peaks and troughs. You can easily create a beautiful and informative stream graph with Displayr.
Visually dynamic and interactive
Stream graphs can be very aesthetically pleasing, with different colors to distinguish between categories or streams. With Displayr, you can easily customize your stream graph to be visually attractive with editing a premade color palette or creating your own. You can also make your stream graph more visually dynamic and interactive with custom labels that appear when you hover over a stream.
Easily publish, embed, or export to PowerPoint
Want to publish or export your graph or entire presentation to PowerPoint? You can do so with just a few clicks in Displayr. You can also easily duplicate your stream graph and swap out your data to create a new stream graph with minimal fuss and time spent.
Make your stream graph in 3 easy steps
Step 1
Step 2
Follow the prompts to connect, type, or paste your data and create your stream graph. Next, add your other visualizations and text annotations.
Step 3
Add some filters to make your report interactive and publish or export to PowerPoint or as a PDF with one click.
What is a stream graph?
A stream graph is a type of data visualization that is a variation of a stacked area chart. Instead of plotting values against a straight, fixed axis like the stacked area chart, the stream graph has shapes centered around a central baseline – the y-axis.
Stream graphs show changes in data for different categories over time with the use of flowing, organic shapes that resemble a river or as the name suggests – a stream. The size of each individual stream is proportional to the values in each category. Because of this, stream graphs are particularly good for displaying high-volume data sets if you are looking for trends and patterns over time for a wide range of categories.
For example, stream graphs are very good at highlighting seasonal or periodic peaks and troughs. For this reason they are usually used in industries such as ecommerce, marketing and finance, and used to visualize data like stock prices, sales, website traffic or social media engagement.
“Displayr is extremely powerful and extremely intuitive. It can do vastly more analysis more efficiently than any of the tools I’ve tried in the past."
Ron Gailey
President – Americas, Mobile Digital Insights
Don't limit yourself to just stream graphs
Ready to generate more stunning visualizations? There is a whole world out there of awesome ways to visualize your data.
Whether it’s heat maps, choropleth maps, or line graphs, Displayr can help you transform your data into whatever story you want to tell!
And just like stream graphs, you can customize colors, fonts, and sizes, and have a play with Displayr’s cool features.
Even better, combine different visualizations to create a truly impressive infographic or presentation. What are you waiting for?
Data visualization and analysis for evidence and inspiration
Instantly visualize what you are learning. Displayr is a robust, collaborative analysis and reporting tool built for humans, not robots. SQL, R, and no-code work together so you can analyze, visualize, and construct your report simultaneously in the same app.
Stream graph FAQs
What is a stream graph?
A stream graph is a variation of a stacked area chart. Instead of plotting values against the conventional y-axis, the stream graph uses a central baseline which is parallel to the x-axis. In a stream graph, each area flows along the central baseline, giving the impression of ‘rivers’ or ‘streams’.
The size or width of each individual stream size is proportional to values in each category. This central baseline is often a time scale. Therefore, stream graphs often show changes in data for different categories over time. Each category or ‘stream’ on the graph is often a different color to make the graph more visually appealing and readable.
What is a stream graph used for?
Stream graphs are often used for showing changes in different categories over time and looking for patterns or trends. For example, regular peaks or troughs in a chart that correspond to certain months could indicate a seasonal pattern. Like stacked area charts, stream graphs are useful for exploring the relative proportion of something to a whole. They are also good for high-volume data sets and when there are many categories over time that change, and these categories may stop or start at different times.
How do you read a stream graph?
The x-axis of the stream graph shows a timescale. The height of each individual stream shape shows how the value of that category has changed over time. The length of the stream shape shows its duration.
Remember, stream graphs may have categories start or stop at different points on the graph. Normally, each stream is a different color to help distinguish them. The stream graph may also employ a sliding scale of shades to indicate something about the category’s relative quantitative value.
To read a stream graph, look for peaks or troughs over time which may indicate periodic patterns. Looking at the overall shape of the stream may also give you an idea of trends or also reveal any major outliers. You can also look at the relative height of a stream at a particular time to indicate its proportion of the whole.
How to create a stream graph in Displayr?
To use Displayr’s stream graph creator, you need to sign up first, confirm your email by clicking on the confirmation link that you’ll receive, and then follow the prompts to create your first stream graph.
