Grouped bar charts place series side by side within each category. They are best for direct comparisons.
When to use grouped bars
Use grouped bars when comparing series is more important than showing total composition:
- Revenue by month for multiple product lines
- New vs returning users by week
- Open vs closed tickets by team
- Budget vs actual by department
Grouped vs stacked
Use grouped bars when you want viewers to compare each series directly. Use stacked bars when the total and the contribution to the total matter.
SQL shape
A grouped bar chart typically needs a category, a series, and a numeric value:
select
region,
channel,
sum(revenue) as revenue
from orders
group by 1, 2
order by 1, 2select
region,
channel,
sum(revenue) as revenue
from orders
group by 1, 2
order by 1, 2Setup tips
- Keep category labels short.
- Use horizontal layout when labels are long.
- Limit the number of series to avoid crowded groups.