Horizontal Stacked Bar Charts | Analyze Part-to-Whole Contributions with Clarity#

Horizontal Stacked Bar Charts combine grouped comparisons with compositional insights. This chart type is especially effective when you want to visualize totals and subcomponent breakdowns side by side—ideal for use cases like revenue by region and product category, or survey scores split by response group.

The Edilitics Visualization module lets you create Horizontal Stacked Bar Charts through a point-and-click interface, with built-in support for field mapping, aggregation, formatting, and interaction. Every chart is based on a governed dataset, ensuring consistent filters and logic across views.

When to Use a Horizontal Stacked Bar Chart#

📌 Also see: Chart Types Overview

Chart Configuration in Edilitics#

Inputs Required#

• 1 Category Field (Column)

  Used for bar groupings along the y-axis (e.g., Region, Customer Segment)

• 2–10 Numeric Fields (Rows)

  Each numeric field becomes a stack in the horizontal bar (e.g., Product A Sales, Product B Sales, etc.)

📌 For non-numeric fields, Edilitics applies automatic count aggregation.

How to Configure a Horizontal Stacked Bar Chart#

• Select "Horizontal Stacked Bar" from the Chart Library

• Assign your category (column) and submetric (row) fields

• Apply aggregations

  Choose from: Sum, Count, Average, Min, Max, etc.

• Customize visual style via the Format tab:

  • Assign unique colors per row field

  • Set bar spacing and stack order

  • Adjust axis labels, font, and tick intervals

  • Add chart title and legend

• Enable interactivity

  • Tooltips for segment-level data

  • Sorting and filtering controls

  • Data labels by segment or total

• Embed into dashboards

  Use within dashboards to align visual analysis across modules.

Feature Highlights#

Stacked Segmentation#

• Visualizes multiple rows of data within each bar using stacked segments

• Each field’s contribution is scaled proportionally and color-coded

Tooltip & Value Formatting#

• Tooltips show both category name and metric details for each segment

• Format values as percentages, currencies, or scientific notation

• Customize decimal precision, prefix/suffix, and display unit (K, M, B)

Legend Management#

• Legends auto-generate based on selected rows

• Supports custom label override and positioning

• Essential for identifying stacks in each bar

Flexible Labeling#

• Show/hide axis labels and gridlines

• Apply conditional label formatting per segment

• Optionally display total values at the end of each bar

Filtering & Drilldown#

• Support for dashboard-level filters

• Filter categories or submetrics independently

• Tooltip-based exploration reveals deeper insights

📘 Related: Filter Types in Visualizations

Best Practices for Horizontal Stacked Bar Charts#

How Edilitics Handles Stacked Layouts#

Unlike manual design tools or loose spreadsheet visualizations, Edilitics:

• Requires governed datasets for consistent metric logic

• Automatically calculates stack totals and proportional segment widths

• Supports real-time updates with dataset or filter changes

This means your horizontal stacked bars are always accurate, actionable, and ready for enterprise use.

Horizontal Stacked Bar Charts combine layout efficiency with compositional depth—perfect for showing both what is happening and why. With Edilitics, you can build these charts interactively, apply granular control, and integrate them across your analytics environment.