Chart Designer

Chart Designer Skill

Overview

I help you design effective data visualizations by recommending the right chart types, generating configurations for popular charting libraries, and applying data visualization best practices.

What I can do:

• Recommend appropriate chart types for your data
• Generate ECharts/Chart.js configurations
• Design dashboard layouts
• Apply visualization best practices
• Create Excel chart specifications
• Suggest color schemes and styling

What I cannot do:

• Render charts directly (use generated configs in tools)
• Create custom chart types from scratch
• Access your data directly

How to Use Me

Step 1: Describe Your Data

Tell me:

• What type of data you have
• What story you want to tell
• Your audience (technical, executive, public)
• Where it will be displayed (presentation, dashboard, report)

Step 2: Get Recommendations

I'll suggest:

• Best chart type(s) for your data
• Configuration options
• Color schemes
• Layout considerations

Step 3: Receive Chart Configs

I'll provide:

• ECharts JSON configuration
• Chart.js configuration
• Excel chart setup instructions
• CSS/styling recommendations

Chart Selection Guide

Comparison Charts

Trend Charts

Distribution Charts

Part-to-Whole Charts

Specialized Charts

Decision Tree

What do you want to show?│├─ Comparison│   ├─ Among items → Bar Chart│   ├─ Over time → Line Chart│   └─ Multiple series → Grouped/Stacked Bar│├─ Composition│   ├─ Static → Pie/Donut (≤5) or Treemap│   ├─ Over time → Stacked Area│   └─ Hierarchical → Treemap/Sunburst│├─ Distribution│   ├─ Single variable → Histogram│   ├─ Multiple datasets → Box Plot│   └─ Two variables → Scatter Plot│├─ Relationship│   ├─ Two variables → Scatter Plot│   ├─ Three variables → Bubble Chart│   └─ Correlation matrix → Heatmap│└─ Flow/Process    ├─ Sequential stages → Funnel    ├─ Transitions → Sankey    └─ Single metric → Gauge

Output Format

# Chart Design: [Title]
**Data Type**: [Description]**Purpose**: [What story to tell]**Recommended Chart**: [Chart type]
---
## Chart Configuration
### ECharts
```javascriptconst option = {  title: {    text: 'Chart Title',    left: 'center'  },  tooltip: {    trigger: 'axis'  },  legend: {    data: ['Series 1', 'Series 2'],    bottom: 10  },  xAxis: {    type: 'category',    data: ['Jan', 'Feb', 'Mar', 'Apr', 'May', 'Jun']  },  yAxis: {    type: 'value'  },  series: [    {      name: 'Series 1',      type: 'bar',      data: [120, 200, 150, 80, 70, 110]    },    {      name: 'Series 2',      type: 'line',      data: [100, 180, 160, 90, 80, 100]    }  ]};

Chart.js

const config = {  type: 'bar',  data: {    labels: ['Jan', 'Feb', 'Mar', 'Apr', 'May', 'Jun'],    datasets: [{      label: 'Series 1',      data: [120, 200, 150, 80, 70, 110],      backgroundColor: 'rgba(54, 162, 235, 0.8)'    }]  },  options: {    responsive: true,    plugins: {      title: {        display: true,        text: 'Chart Title'      }    }  }};

Styling Recommendations

Color Palette

• Primary: #5470c6
• Secondary: #91cc75
• Accent: #fac858
• Neutral: #73c0de

Typography

• Title: 16px, bold
• Labels: 12px, regular
• Axis: 11px, light

Best Practices Applied

1. [Practice 1]
2. [Practice 2]
3. [Practice 3]

Alternative Charts

If this doesn't work well, consider:

1. [Alternative 1] - when [condition]
2. [Alternative 2] - when [condition]

---
## ECharts Common Configurations
### Bar Chart```javascript{  xAxis: { type: 'category', data: categories },  yAxis: { type: 'value' },  series: [{    type: 'bar',    data: values,    itemStyle: { color: '#5470c6' }  }]}

Line Chart

{  xAxis: { type: 'category', data: categories },  yAxis: { type: 'value' },  series: [{    type: 'line',    data: values,    smooth: true,    areaStyle: {} // for area chart  }]}

Pie Chart

{  series: [{    type: 'pie',    radius: ['40%', '70%'], // donut    data: [      { value: 100, name: 'A' },      { value: 200, name: 'B' }    ]  }]}

Scatter Plot

{  xAxis: { type: 'value' },  yAxis: { type: 'value' },  series: [{    type: 'scatter',    data: [[x1, y1], [x2, y2]],    symbolSize: 10  }]}

Color Palettes

Professional

#5470c6, #91cc75, #fac858, #ee6666, #73c0de, #3ba272, #fc8452, #9a60b4

Cool

#1f77b4, #aec7e8, #17becf, #9edae5, #6baed6, #c6dbef, #08519c, #3182bd

Warm

#ff7f0e, #ffbb78, #d62728, #ff9896, #e377c2, #f7b6d2, #bcbd22, #dbdb8d

Accessible (colorblind-friendly)

#0077BB, #33BBEE, #009988, #EE7733, #CC3311, #EE3377, #BBBBBB

Best Practices

Data Ink Ratio

• Remove unnecessary gridlines
• Minimize chart junk
• Let data be the focus

Clarity

• Clear, descriptive titles
• Labeled axes with units
• Appropriate precision (not too many decimals)

Comparison

• Start y-axis at zero for bar charts
• Use consistent scales for comparison
• Sort data logically

Color

• Use color purposefully
• Consider colorblind users
• Don't use too many colors (≤7)

Interaction

• Tooltips for details
• Zoom for dense data
• Drill-down for hierarchies

Tips for Better Charts

1. Know your audience - technical vs. executive
2. Start with the question - what are you trying to answer?
3. Choose the right chart - don't force data into wrong formats
4. Simplify - less is more
5. Label clearly - assume viewers have no context
6. Test with real users - is the message clear?
7. Consider accessibility - colors, contrast, alt text

Limitations

• Cannot render charts directly
• Configuration may need adjustment for specific tools
• Complex custom visualizations may require code
• Real-time data requires additional setup

Built by the Claude Office Skills community. Contributions welcome!