Greatest information visualization instruments

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The right picture immediately impresses a conference room.

Sell ​​that new client, get approval from your boss, and gather the team behind you. Data visualization tools turn a whole bunch of numbers into a razor-sharp image that says it all.

With the right product, you can control the overwhelming amount of data to tell a clear and compelling story, and leave your audience with an image that will resonate long after your presentation is over.

In this post, I'll give a complete rundown of the best data visualization tools and what to look for when making your decision.

The top 5 options for data visualization

  1. Tableau – Best for Enterprise
  2. Infogram – Best for collaboration
  3. Plecto – Best for sales teams
  4. Datawrapper – Best DIY visualization tool
  5. Highcharts – Best for interactive visualizations

How to choose the best data visualization tool for you

I get it. There are a million tools you can use to visualize your data.

Then when you start digging the question is, "Wait, do I need to know multiple programming languages ​​to use this really cool product?"

Slower. Do not worry. You don't have to go back to school to get amazing data visualizations.

Some of the high-end tools require a bit of IT know-how to get to market, but these are really aimed at companies that can incorporate this into their budget.

If that's not what you're looking for, don't worry. There are really great data visualization tools that a non-professional can get up and running before lunch.

The key is knowing what you want your data visualization tool to do.

Knowing your local needs is a quick way to narrow down your options by going through all of the key elements of the data visualization products.

Visualization functions

Are you looking for a useful tool for creating elegant reports or a platform to publish interactive dashboards?

Each provider shows examples of data visualization on their website. Check these out and really reflect on your gut reaction.

If you're looking for that “wow” factor, don't be satisfied until you've found something that gives your presentations the aesthetic edge.

Connectivity

This is possibly the biggest make-it-or-break-it factor on the list: What data types and sources does the data visualization tool support?

No data visualization tool is good enough to warrant a massive migration. You need to find something that is related to your data wherever it is.

Ideally, connecting data is a simple, secure, and highly visible process.

Look for products that clearly explain how data sources are managed and connected. Official partnerships with the database products you use are a huge plus.

Do a few reviews to see if the connectivity is as good as advertised. Also, guide your sales team through the deployment you want to make sure it works as planned.

Qualification requirements

Not so long ago, complex data visualization required knowledge of SQL (Structured Query Language), Python, or another language.

With great data visualization products like Tableau, users today can search large databases in natural language. They provide drag-and-drop features that allow laypeople to examine the most complex questions in more depth.

However, when complex data flows are coming into real-time dashboards, it is a good idea to have someone in house who can make sure everything is running smoothly.

Mobile compatibility

Look for something that will appeal to your clients and customers no matter how they browse.

Does your data visualization tool support touch and multi-touch?

Good interactive visualizations take a lot of work and the last thing you want is for users on iOS or Android to be excluded from the experience due to incompatibility.

High quality data visualization software delivers a final project that looks great on a desktop, tablet, or smartphone. You can only really move if you commit to developing visual content for internal use.

Another thing to think about is working together. Will your remote and mobile workers be able to stay up to date on their team projects?

The different types of data visualization tools

This product category is very diverse, ranging from humble software that turns a spreadsheet column into a pie chart, to interactive dashboards that interpret data flows from multiple sources in real time.

While data visualization tools aren't broken down into completely neat levels, there are definitely recognizable categories.

I start with the lightweight tools and work on the best business intelligence software that can do the most complex data analysis.

Simple charts and graphs

Simple chart tools have limited connectivity and few options for data visualization. The draw is that they are often free and easy to use for everyone. Here is an example from Google Charts that is free forever:

These lightweight data visualization solutions can be useful for teams in constant communication.

However, when presenting to customers or company directors, the reports generated by a simple chart may not appear.

Infographics

Infographics are a great way to make compelling visual statements.

I like them because you can incorporate multiple diagrams, images, and information streams into one cohesive presentation that can be shared on a billboard or smartphone screen.

Plus, these are great for your content. Adding original infographics will increase approvals and retweets as it will make your posts stand out.

Infogram is a very popular infographic tool. If you look at the examples above you can see why I checked it out. Your teams get a whole new dimension of artistic and creative freedom to present data in an eye-catching way.

Using Publisher or Google Docs to get this great bottom line would be a chore if possible.

In general, infographic tools offer many options for visualization right away.

They typically don't have the connectivity or analytics capabilities that come with business intelligence software, despite being far more robust than a simple charting tool.

Interactive visualizations

Would you like people to spend time on your website?

Interactive visualizations allow customers and visitors to play with your data in a controlled manner.

In the following example of data visualization from Datawrapper, the diagram displays information based on the county the user is over. The county itself is also highlighted, and the average income is adjusted on a sliding scale:

Think of these products as a mix or a midpoint between infographics and much more powerful business intelligence tools.

Interactive visualizations are not complex for end users to understand, but they do allow users a degree of control over the data that an infographic cannot support.

Business intelligence tools

Business intelligence (BI) tools sift through vast amounts of raw data and turn it into actionable insights. Many BI tools have data visualization tools as part of their reporting capabilities to support the most complex analyzes.

BI tools connect to a large number of different data sources and typically require a higher level of technical knowledge to deploy and manage. In most cases, however, end users such as executives and sales directors can easily edit data in a dashboard after it's set up.

Customizable dashboards and robust reporting functions enable different people within a company to pay attention to relevant KPIs in real time and to capture trends and patterns that would otherwise be hidden.

A BI tool is a significant investment to deploy and maintain, while tools from the previous product categories typically require much less work.

However, there are BI options for small and medium-sized businesses that offer cross-organizational connectivity and data visualization at an affordable price.

# 1 – Tableau – Best for Enterprise

Tableau is a top-notch BI tool with phenomenal data visualization capabilities. It's not the cheapest option out there, but you get both an intuitive user interface and the ability to drill down into virtually any data source.

In other words, you don't have to make the typical sacrifices. Tableau is extremely powerful in terms of supported visualizations, but it's really easy to use once you've set it up.

Many companies choose Tableau to promote a data-driven, transparent, and collaborative culture. It's also one of the most secure products out there, with enterprise governance tools and the option to deploy locally.

For the most part, Tableau can do everything any other data visualization tool can, but better. Some of the standout features include:

  • Combine different data sources without writing code
  • Statistical drag-and-drop analysis, forecasts and trend lines
  • Optimize dashboards for all screen sizes
  • Queries in natural language of all published data sources
  • AI-supported data analysis
  • Publish data sources as encrypted extracts on Tableau Server
  • Robust data management tools
  • Support and solutions from an active community of over 1 million users

Team pricing for Tableau is role-based, so large organizations can save on their subscription. The roles are:

  • Creator: $ 70 user / month
  • Researcher: $ 35 users / month, 5 users minimum ($ 42 if fully hosted by Tableau)
  • spectator: $ 12 users / month, 100 users minimum

Creators have full author / edit rights and can connect new data sources and flows. Explorers can work with most existing assets and create their own visualizations. Viewers can interact with data and collaborate with colleagues even though they cannot create or prepare data.

Tableau Public is a free version of the product forever. The company offers a free 14-day trial that you can use to try out some of the premium features.

# 2 – Infogram – Best for collaboration

Infogram is an intuitive data visualization tool that delivers stunning reports, slides, dashboards and visuals for social media.

First time users will love the user interface. In principle, the entire visualization building can be created using drag & drop.

Infogram makes it easy for teams to share and create consistent work with customizable branded templates, role-based permissions, and file versioning.

You can see who is working on your projects in real time, and you can add comment threads directly to an image in the infographic.

Teams can be up and running quickly with Infogram and take advantage of the incredibly comprehensive design capabilities:

  • 1 million images and symbols as well as animations, GIFs and videos
  • More than 35 interactive diagrams and over 550 interactive maps
  • Preset and customizable brand design themes
  • Data integration with Google Analytics, Amazon Redshift, OneDrive, MySQL, Oracle and more
  • JSON feed for importing live data
  • WordPress plugin

The tweaked features don't stop there. Tasks like embedding projects just involve copying / pasting embed codes into your CMS.

Infograms can be extremely useful for businesses of all sizes. In addition to being a free forever version, Infogram offers several pricing tiers:

  • professional: $ 19 / month for one person
  • Companies: $ 67 / month for one person
  • team: $ 149 / month for 3 users
  • Companies: Contact sales

With team and enterprise subscriptions, you can invite members, set flexible permissions, share projects and collaborate in real time. Connect your data, get the input you need, and post great-looking content before the week ends.

# 3 – Plecto – Best for sales teams

Plecto is a great tool for promoting a data-driven team culture. The idea is to include everyone in the constant flow of data by making all relevant KPIs available in a clearly visible real-time dashboard.

Okay, lots of other tools can do that. When it comes to gamification, Plecto really separates itself from the crowd.

Gamification? Yes, it's a word and a hot one these days. Plecto makes it easy to create competitions using your KPIs as a benchmark. These can close sales, hire employees, or create lists – whatever the metric you need to drive, you can use Plecto to fuel the spirit of competition.

Plecto is built for that. It's easy to set goals and achievements that are directly related to the numbers that matter to you. Increase transparency and motivation at the same time.

The platform's features are great for sales teams. However, other departments across the company can benefit from the unique mix of features and functionality, including:

  • Unlimited dashboards and data sources
  • Custom KPIs
  • View multiple dashboards on the same screen
  • Integrations with Microsoft SQL, Oracle SQL, PostgreSQL and MySQL
  • Notifications based on thresholds and other milestones
  • One-click integration with more than 60 leading cloud services
  • Create and track individual performance agreements in private employee manager dashboards

There are three plan options for Plecto:

  • medium: $ 100 / month for 5 licenses, $ 20 / month for each additional license
  • Big: $ 350 / month for 10 licenses, $ 20 / month for each additional license
  • Companies: Contact sales, at least 100 licenses

Some of the important data visualization tools (like SQL integration) are not included in the Medium plan. All you have to do is buy licenses for users who send their data to Plecto (view only users are free).

# 4 – Datawrapper – Best DIY data visualization tool

Datawrapper offers a simple feel for charting tools, but has the ability to provide interactive and responsive charts, maps and tables.

It's not designed for BI, but rather for mass producing next-level data visualizations to draw attention to feeds and pages.

Many companies, such as the New York Times, use data wrappers every day to improve their content. With impressive graphics, The Times can convey complex ideas to consumers about voting data, consumer preferences, and more.

Datawrapper has a clear, intuitive user interface with which you can easily access the full range of functions of the cloud-based product. This includes:

  • Copy data from Excel, Sheets or the web into Datawrapper
  • Create live update graphs by uploading CSV / XLS files or linking to a URL
  • Embed different types of interactive and responsive charts, maps and tables
  • Export as PNG, PDF or SVG
  • Color blind testing for all images
  • Live update of graphics for maps
  • Collaborative tools and shared team folders
  • On-premise creation to comply with legal requirements

You must purchase premium plans to create custom diagrams and white label projects. Custom, the first tier over free, starts at $ 599 per month and enables businesses to reach their target audience with original branded artwork.

The free version of Datawrapper is great for internal or team use, but is less attractive for public visualizations.

# 5 – Highcharts – Best for interactive visualizations

Highcharts is a wonderful tool that developers can use to add interactive charts to web and mobile projects. It's a clean, SVG-based, cross-platform JavaScript diagram library.

Upload multiple data types and work with official wrappers:

  • Microsoft .Net
  • python
  • PHP
  • R.
  • iOS & Android

This product requires some technical knowledge to be used effectively. The downside, however, is that it is relatively inexpensive and works with any database or stack.

And the results are phenomenal.

Highcharts is expandable, scalable and should work anywhere on any device. Some of the main features are:

  • Multiple map types (heatmap, mapline, tilemap, etc.)
  • Special Highcharts Gannt product
  • Export to JPG, PDF, PNG or SVG
  • Add text tooltip information when users hover over labeled data points
  • No client-side plugins are required for pure JavaScript
  • Intuitive configuration and diagram editing
  • Mobile and touch optimized for a truly interactive user experience
  • Download, review, and edit the Highcharts source code.

All Highcharts products are available free of charge to personal, non-commercial or non-profit organizations. This includes Highchart Stock, Gantt, Maps, Editor and Mobile.

They also have offers for startups and opportunities for other companies to customize the various Highcharts products to suit their needs. Contact sales to create a pricing plan.

Summary

Tableau is the best tool for businesses because it gives teams an advantage in all aspects of data visualization.

It's a sizeable investment, however, and not every company is looking for a comprehensive business intelligence solution.

When you need a data visualization tool to create and share memorable images, Infogram will help your teams take their game to the next level without any graphic design or programming skills.

Companies that want to embed interactive visualizations in their online content have come to the right place with Datawrapper. Highcharts are another great option for embedding interactive content on your websites. However, this is not as easy for non-experts as it is for data wrappers.

Get back to Tableau for a second – yes, it's hard, but you can try the free version today without going through a multi-step business sign-up process. There are no frames to jump through, just a chance to take your data visualizations to the next level.

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