---
title: "Chart Components"
canonical: "https://wiki.yellowfinbi.com/space/user80/1540653/Chart%20Components"
format: markdown
---
> Macro (anchor)
> Macro (toc)
## Overview
In the chart data panel you will be prompted to select the series you wish to use in your chart and also edit the series style options. Having selected your chart type, the data selection panel will be refreshed to display the appropriate options for the chart.
## Standard Components
| **Icon** | **Component** | **Description** |
| --- | --- | --- |
|  | **Horizontal Axis** | The field used to define the horizontal axis of the chart. Depending on the chart type selected, this may be either a dimension or metric field. |
|  | **Vertical Axis** | The field used to define the vertical axis of the chart. Depending on the chart type selected, this may be either a dimension or metric field |
|  | **Colour** | The field used to define the colours used in the chart. Depending on the chart type selected, this may be either a dimension or metric field. |
|  | **Size** | The field used to determine the size of bubbles in the chart. This will be a metric or aggregated dimension field. |
|  | **Animation** | A Date or Time field that can be used as frames to animate the chart. Each value of the animation field will generate a unique frame in the animation.
**Note:** it is recommended that you change the Chart Title option to display the Animation Field in order to provide the report writer with a label for each frame. |
## Specialty Components
| **Icon** | **Component** | **Description** |
| --- | --- | --- |
|  | **Image** | Choose the relevant image that you want to use to display your data. Used for Raster Maps, Comparative Infographics, and Proportional Infographics. |
|  | **Region** | The region is the field that has reference codes associated with areas on the map. Used for Raster Maps. |
|  | **Label** | The label for the roll over bubble. Used for Google Maps. |
|  | **Description** | A description that is contained in the roll over bubble. Used for Google Maps. |
|  | **Link** | A hyperlink that can be embedded into the bubble to take the user to an external site/report. Used for Google Maps. |
|  | **Latitude** | The Latitude coordinates field. Used for Google Maps. |
|  | **Longitude** | The Longitude coordinates field. Used for Google Maps. |
|  | **Geo Field** | This is the field in your report that contains the GIS data types. Used for Google GIS Maps, GIS Maps, GIS Bubble Maps, GIS Heat Maps. |
|  | **Tool Tip** | The field to be used for tool tip text. Used for Google GIS Maps, GIS Maps, GIS Bubble Maps. |
|  | **Measure** | Meter charts only display a single value – select the series to be used for this value. Used for Meters. |
|  | **Radar** | This is the category field used for the radar spokes. Used for Radars. |
|  | **Events** | Binary values that signify if the event was occurring on each of the time values. Used for Events. |
|  | **Value** | A metric the user created to display a trend line on the chart. Used for Financial Lines and Events. |
|  | **Volume** | Number of shares traded in the time period. Used for Financial Lines, High Low, Candlestick. |
|  | **Trend** | A metric the user created to display a trend line on the chart. Used for Financial Lines, High Low, Candlestick. |
|  | **Start** | Share value at the beginning of the time period (commonly: day). Used for High Low, Candlestick. |
|  | **End** | Share value at the end of the time period (commonly: day). Used for High Low, Candlestick. |
|  | **High** | The highest value the share reached in the time period. Used for High Low, Candlestick. |
|  | **Low** | The lowest value the share reached in the time period. Used for High Low, Candlestick. |
## Field Menus
When fields are added to the chart, depending on what component of chart they are used for, they may have a drop down menu that allows you to access relevant settings.
| **Option** | **Description** |
| --- | --- |
| **Settings** | This opens the series settings menu, with the current series expanded. |
| **Aggregation Type** | This allows you to apply an aggregation for use within the chart that is different what has been applied at the report level. The options available are:
> Macro (legacy-content)
> Macro (legacy-content)
This aggregation is applied **after** the results are returned from the database and as such will **not** be included in the report SQL. It's important to remember that these aggregations do not query the database, but the report results.
**Note:** this is only available to metric fields, or dimensions that have already been aggregated at the report level.
This is **not** compatible with the following charts:
> Macro (legacy-content) |
| **Color** | This allows you to change the color applied to a metric, or in some cases dimension series. Options include:
- **Default** - this will use the system default chart colors.
- **Custom** - this will open the series settings menu and allow you to specify a custom color for each series. Only applicable if the color field has a dimension value.
- **Reference** **Code** - this will use the colors applied to the Org Reference Codes, if the included data field has any Org Ref Codes applied.
- **Monochrome **- this will use different shades of a specified color.
- **Conditional** **Formatting **- this will use the colors specified for basic conditional formatting (only available if conditional formatting has been applied to the data field used for color-coding).
> See [Color Procedures](https://yellowfin.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/user80/pages/1578152) for more information. |
| **Axis Settings** | This opens the axis settings menu, with the current axis expanded. |
| **Time Series** | If the field is compatible with [Time Series](https://yellowfin.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/user80/pages/1542131) functionality, this option will allow you to toggle it on or off. |
| **Sort By** | If the field is compatible with sorting, this option will allow you to define how the data in the chart is sorted.
> See [Sorting](#ChartComponents-sortby) for more information. |
| **Sort** | If the field is compatible with sorting, this option will allow you to toggle the sort direction between **ascending** and **descending** order. |
| **Add Function** | If the field is compatible with functions, this option will allow you to create a new field available to the chart, which is based on a report field with a selected function applied to it.
> See [Chart Functions](https://yellowfin.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/user80/pages/1591808) for more information on the functions available. |
> Macro (anchor)
### Sorting
Charts, by default, are sorted based on the sorting applied to the report table. From there, they can be customised to use different sorting methods and orders.
| **Option** | **Description** |
| --- | --- |
| **Data Order** | This means that the chart will be sorted by the order the values in the chart appear in the report table. |
| **Alphanumeric** | This means that the chart will be sorted by the alphanumeric values of the selected field. |
| **Series** | This means that the chart will be sorted by the values in a specified chart series. |
| **Date** | You can display the data according to a progressive date range, that is uniformly (rather than discretely) spaced along the axis, in an ascending or descending order. |
| **Group Order** | This means that the chart will be sorted according to the order of the grouped data. Click [here](https://yellowfin.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/user80/pages/1542406/Sorting+Procedures#SortingProcedures-groupsort) to learn how to do this. |
**Note:** you can only sort a chart by one field at a time.
## Validation
To help ensure the correct fields are used in the chart building process, validation messages will be displayed to aid the user.
### Mandatory vs. Optional Fields
In order to inform the user which fields are mandatory and which are optional for a selected chart type, a **red** circle is displayed in the component area for required components.
### Component Validation
In order to help the user work out how to populate chart component areas, if the wrong field type is dragged into a component a validation message will be displayed.
| **Date Types** | **Geometry Types** |
| --- | --- |
|  |  |