The Economist
visual styleguide
Version 1.2 // Updated 4 May 2017
mattmclean@economist.com
2
Table of contents
Overview
3 what’s changed?
Chart types
Chart styling
4 Chart sizes
13 Bar/column, side by side
21 Double-scale charts
5 Typefaces
14 Bar/column, stacked
22 Blob-heads
6 Print
15 Line, side by side
23 Timelines
7 Web
16 Line, stacked
25 Miscellaneous styling
8 Leader block /
World this Week
17 Thermometer
Chart elements
9 Espresso
10 Panel charts
Colour
11 Print palette
12 Web palette
18 Scatter
19 Table
20 Pie / Doughnut
26 Resources
3
overview
What’s changed
Web charts
24pt spacer between panels
OLD DESIGN
NEW DESIGN
rotated tag
The real deal
New typeface
“World” real interest rate
Average ten-year inflation-indexed bond yield, %
Drivers of the change in interest rates
G7 countries, excluding Italy
1980-2015, percentage points
0
Growth
–
*
5
Marker for panels
3
Spreads
Relative price of capital
+
0
–
1985
90
95
2000
05
10
16
1
Average ten-year inflation-indexed bond yield, %
G7 countries, excluding Italy
5
Inequality
Global savings glut
Public investment
Unexplained
*
New colour palette
Demographics
1
White background
“World” real interest rate
1
4
2
The real deal
Drivers of the change in interest rates
1980-2015, percentage points
0
4
Growth
3
Demographics
-1
2
3
2
1
4
0
5
Sources: “Measuring the ‘world’ real interest rate”, by M. King and D. Low, NBER working paper, Feb 2014; “Secular drivers
*The Economist estimate
of the global real interest rate” by L. Rachel and T. Smith, Bank of England working paper, Dec 2015; The Economist
-1
1985
90
95
2000
05
10
16
Sources: “Measuring the ‘world’ real interest rate”, by M. King and D. Low,
NBER working paper, Feb 2014; “Secular drivers of the global real interest rate”
by L. Rachel and T. Smith, Bank of England working paper, Dec 2015; The Economist
No margins
-2
Spreads
Relative price of capital
Inequality
Global savings glut
Public investment
Unexplained
-3
-4
-5
*The Economist estimate
Source text 75% black
4
elements
Chart sizes
print width (pts)
web equivalent (px)
160pts / 290px
332pts / 595px
117pts / 290px
STANDARD PRINT
LEADER /
WTW
1 COLUMN
fixed height
83.5pts / 207px
2 COLUMN
504pts
245pts
3 COLUMN
FREE EXCHANGE
SPECIAL REPORT / TQ / ESSAY
117pts
1/2
COLUMN
160pts / 290px
2/3
COLUMN
245pts
332pts / 595px
1 COLUMN
2 1/2 COLUMN
5
elements
Typefaces
USE FOR
Chart headlines.
Oversize numbers and labels.
Use rarely.
Use rarely - prominent
labelling only
Econ Sans bold
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&()?
Econ Sans Cnd bold
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&()?
Top-level chart labels
Panel headings
coloured text
Sub title
standard chart labelling
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&()?
Econ Sans Cnd medium
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&()?
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&()?
Econ Sans Cnd regular
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&()?
Axis labels
source text
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&()?
Econ Sans Cnd light
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&()?
Footnote symbols
order of use
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&()?
1
2
3
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
1234567890!@£$%^&()?
4
5
6
7
8
* † ‡ § ** †† ‡‡ §§
6
elements
ACTUAL SIZE
Chart dimensions
Standard print
DIMENSIONS AND TYPE SIZES
160pts
Where Tokyo leads
Ten-year government-bond yields, %
Period beginning:
January 1989 ( Japan)
6 15
January 1999 (US)
8
17
6
4
11
2
15
0
1
5
10
13
10
Years since start
Source: Thomson Reuters
10
6
5
6
Econ sans bold 9.5/11pt
Econ sans cnd regular 8/9.5
Econ sans cnd medium 7.5/9
cnd light 7.5/9
cnd light 7.5/9
cnd light 7pt
6
165
4
With sub-subtitle
2
Less cash, less credit
0
India, bank credit to the commercial sector
% increase on a year earlier
30
10
25
10
20
10
15
1
5
axis label cnd reg 7/7.5
Source: cnd light 6.5pt 75k
10
5
0
2000 02
04 06
08
10 12
14
16
Source: Thomson Reuters
Where possible, put units and date
information on a second line at
smaller font size
Econ sans bold 9.5/11pt
Econ sans cnd regular 8/9.5
light 7.5/9
10
TICKMARKS
0.5pt thickness
5 3 2
height
0.4pt thickness
13
7 1pt
7
elements
Chart dimensions
Standard web
ACTUAL SIZE
National anthem monopolies
United States
East Germany
Number of “medal sweeps” by country
Web charts are built at standard print
widths and then exported at 179.22%
Soviet Union
Other
12
10
BUILT AT
APPEARS AT
332pts
595px
8
6
4
2
*
1948
52
56
60
64
68
72
76
80
84
88
92
Sources: International Olympic Committee; Sports Reference; The Economist
0
96
2000
04
08
12
16
*Unified team of ex-Soviet republics
332pts
15
DIMENSIONS AND TYPE SIZES
17
11
5
National anthem monopolies
United States
East Germany
Number of “medal sweeps” by country
Soviet Union
Other
15
12
10
8
6
4
2
*
0
10
10
5
1948
52
56
60
64
68
72
76
80
84
88
Sources: International Olympic Committee; Sports Reference; The Economist
92
96
2000
04
08
12
16
*Unified team of ex-Soviet republics
8
elements
Chart dimensions
leader block /
world this week
ACTUAL SIZE
117pts
US consumer prices
% increase on a year earlier
1
13
0
12
13
14
6
12
3
Fed target 2
2011
leader charts are exported
for the web at 247.86%
DIMENSIONS AND TYPE SIZES
15
9
Econ sans bold 8pt
Econ sans cnd reg 7pt
light 6pt
medium 6pt
1
10
5
83.5pts
(Leader block
fixed height)
0
2011
12
13
14
15
Leader blocks should be simplified as much as possible, with minimal grid lines and tick-mark labelling
Emphasis should be on showing a clear overall message, rather than identifying values for every data point.
Property taxes
Return on assets
Chinese industrial enterprises*, %
Private-owned
10
5
State-owned 0
1999
2005
10
15
*7-month moving average
As % of total market value, 2014
Annual
New York
Renewable energy
Transaction
0.8 0.2
India
2004
London
0.4
Argentina
New investment*, $bn
0.4
5.1
China
2014
10.1
04
5.2
14
78.9
*Includes estimates for undisclosed deals
2.1
9.1
GDP, % increase
on year earlier
2011
2015*
Budget deficit
as % of GDP
-2.9
-5.6 0
Deaths from terrorism
United States
W. Europe
200
100
0
2011
2015*
*forecast
APPEARS AT
117pts
290px
83.5
4
10
BUILT AT
2005 10
16*
05
10
16*
*To August 31st
208
9
elements
Chart dimensions
espresso
ACTUAL SIZE
160pts
DIMENSIONS AND TYPE SIZES
6
LA (CHART AS LEAD IMAGE)
15
Fixed depth, blank spacer at bottom of chart
10
9.5
10
6
Econ sans cnd bold 8pt
Econ sans cnd reg 8pt
cnd light 7.5pt
8
CONTENT
120pt
US retail sales
Excluding motor vehicles and parts,
% change on a year earlier
4
0
8
4
-4
0
-4
-8
-8
2007 08
09
10
11
12
13
14
15
2007 08
Source: US Department of Commerce
5
09
10
11
12
13
14
15
Source: US Department of Commerce
LEAVE
BLANK
40pt
160pts
DA (CHART IN ARTICLE BODY)
No fixed depth - same type sizes as standard chart
Econ sans bold 9.5/11pt
Econ sans cnd regular 8/9.5
3
United States
Below the horizon
2
Ten-year government-bond yields,%
3
Germany
United States
2
Germany
1
1
Japan
0
Japan
0
-1
2014
15
16
-1
Source: Thomson Reuters
2014
Source: Thomson Reuters
15
16
OVERALL
DEPTH
160pt
10
elements
Chart dimensions
panel charts
ACTUAL SIZE
LANDSCAPE
Racy
United States
Donald Trump’s media dominance
and polling surge
TV mentions*, % of total
Polling average, %
100
50
80
40
60
30
40
20
20
10
0
Support for Trump v racial resentment
and authoritarianism†,
Republican primary voters
Voter support, %
60
Authoritarianism
Racial resentment
20
0
0
J J
A
S
O
N
D
J
F
2015
M
A M
LOWEST
2016
Sources: GDELT; RCP; YouGov
40
Degree of authoritarianism
Level of resentment
HIGHEST
*National news mentions of Trump compared with all Republican candidates †Poll Jul 30th-Aug 6th 2016
DIMENSIONS AND TYPE SIZES
PORTRAIT
332pts
Racy
United States
6
Donald Trump’s media dominance
and polling surge
TV mentions*, % of total
Polling average, %
100
80
40
60
30
40
20
20
10
0
0
J J
A
S
O
2015
N
D
J
F
M
Authoritarianism
15
10
40
Racial resentment
20
0
Sources: GDELT;
RCP; YouGov
10
8
15
Voter support, %
60
Degree of authoritarianism
Level of resentment
11
A M
2016
Support for Trump v racial resentment
and authoritarianism†,
Republican primary voters
LOWEST
17
50
HIGHEST
*National news mentions of Trump compared
with all Republican candidates
†Poll Jul 30th-Aug 6th 2016
24
Racy
United States
10x1pt
Donald Trump’s media dominance
and polling surge
TV mentions*, % of total
Polling average, %
100
Support for Trump v racial resentment
and authoritarianism†,
Republican primary voters
Voter support, %
60
50
80
40
60
30
40
20
20
10
0
0
J J
A
S
O
N
2015
Sources: GDELT; RCP; YouGov
D
J
F
M
2016
A M
Authoritarianism
40
Racial resentment
20
0
LOWEST
Degree of authoritarianism
Level of resentment
HIGHEST
*National news mentions of Trump compared with all Republican candidates †Poll Jul 30th-Aug 6th 2016
11
colour
Chart palette
PRINT
SECONDARY
MAIN
ECON RED
RED1
RED TEXT
BLUE1
BLUE2
BLUE2 TEXT
C0
M 100
Y 100
K0
C 10
M 70
Y 50
K0
C 12
M 80
Y 60
K0
C 90
M 50
Y 15
K5
C 67
M0
Y 18
K0
C 82
M0
Y 18
K8
C 12
M 30
Y 70
K0
C0
M 75
Y 35
K 45
C 27
M 42
Y 25
K 10
C 85
M0
Y 30
K 20
C 53
M0
Y 26
K0
SUPPORTING Use for multi-category charts where high contrast is needed
BACKGROUND
BRIGHT
PRINT BKGD HIGHLIGHT
NUMBER BOX
C 7.5
M0
Y0
K5
C 22.5
M0
Y0
K 15
C 40
M 70
Y 30
K6
DARK
C0
M 68
Y 73
K0
C6
M 40
Y 100
K0
C 33
M 13
Y 95
K2
C 85
M 10
Y0
K 58
C 80
M 25
Y 50
K 50
C 38
M 30
Y 43
K 26
NEUTRAL
GRID LINES
GREY BOX
GREY TEXT
BLACK PALETTE
C 10
M0
Y0
K 25
C 30
M0
Y0
K 50
C 20
M0
Y0
K 80
C0
M0
Y0
K 25
C0
M0
Y0
K 50
C0
M0
Y0
K 75
C0
M0
Y0
K 100
C 15
M0
Y0
K 10
12
colour
Chart palette
WEB
MAIN
ECON RED
RED
BLUE
CYAN
GREEN
YELLOW
OLIVE
PURPLE
GOLD
GREY
E3120B
DB444B
006BA2
3EBCD2
379A8B
EBB434
B4BA39
9A607F
D1B07C
758D99
BLACK
EQUAL LIGHTNESS COLOUR SCALES
A81829
00588D
005F73
005F52
714C00
4C5900
78405F
674E1F
3F5661
BOXES/NAV
C7303C
1270A8
00788D
00786B
8D6300
667100
925977
826636
576E79
E9EDF0
E64E53
3D89C3
0092A7
2E9284
AA7C00
818A00
AD7291
9D7F4E
6F8793
FF6B6C
5DA4DF
25ADC2
4DAD9E
C89608
9DA521
C98CAC
B99966
89A2AE
FF8785
7BBFFC
4EC8DE
69C9B9
E7B030
BAC03F
E6A6C7
D5B480
A4BDC9
FFA39F
98DAFF
6FE4FB
86E5D4
FFCB4D
D7DB5A
FFC2E3
F2CF9A
BFD8E5
0C0C0C
B7C6CF
758D99
TEXT
3F5661
13
chart types
1 trace with highlight
Bar / column
Side-by-side
2 traces
2 traces with sub-categories
Defenders of democracy
Salud
Doctors’ consultations per person
Selected countries, 2009
0
2
4
6
8
Middle class
Germany
Spain
Austria
France
Luxembourg
Portugal
Britain
Denmark
Sweden
0
GDP, % increase on previous year
Forecasts made in:
40
60
80
Chile
Germany
2011
2012
France
2011
2012
Brazil
Change in worldwide capital spending*, %
2014-17 forecast
September
1
2
3
Euro area 2011
Mexico
2012
Malaysia
Spain
2011
2012
Italy
2011
2012
South Africa
Source: OECD
June
0
Low income
20
Another dotcom boom
Autumn fall
Respondents saying that honest elections held
regularly with a choice of at least two political
parties are very important, 2007, %
Poland
Source: IMF
India
Russia
Source: Pew Global Attitudes Survey
Ethiopia’s GDP, % change on a year earlier
The mighty jungle
Britain, annualised rate of return
on investment*, %
14
12
Equities
Rural property
10
8
COLOUR ORDER
1
2
3
4
5
All property
Forestry
20
6
15
4
10
2
5
0
6
2004
06
Source: IMF
08
10
12
-60 -40 -20
0
20
40
60
Internet
Software
Tech hardware
IT services
Health care
Total
Leisure
Chemicals
Oil, gas and fuels
Metals and mining
Property
Energy equipment
Source: Goldman Sachs
Egypt
African lion
1 trace with +/- axis
*In dollar terms
Differentiate positive/
negative values by colour
only where there is a
meaningful difference
i.e. imports / exports
The money drain
Net private capital inflows/outflows, $bn
100
0
14 15*
*Estimate
20 years
10 years
50
5 years
Sources: MSCI; JP Morgan
*To 2014
0
-50
-100
COLOUR
OVERIDES
Where categories are chronological,
use light-to-dark scale
Growth in Asia
Don’t fence me in
GDP forecasts, % change on a year earlier
2015
2016
-2
0
4
8
India
-20
Cambodia
Laos
-15
-10
-5
0
06
08
Source: Central Bank of Russia
11*
*To June 30th
12
Exports
5
8
White British
4
Other White
0
Mixed
China
04
China, as % of GDP
Metropolitan areas
Other large cities
Inner London
Outer London
98 2000 02
China-United States trade in goods
2001-11
6
-150
1994 96
Trader woes
Britain, % change in segregation index*
2016-20*
2
If categories form meaningful groups,
use colour to reinforce that
Imports
1995
Bangladeshi
2000
-4
05
10
16*
Malaysia
Pakistani
Thailand
Indian
4
Chinese
0
Singapore
-4
African
Brunei
Source: OECD
United States, as % of GDP
1995
Caribbean
*Annual average
Source: University
of Manchester
2000
05
Sources: Census Bureau; IMF
* % that needs to move to
create an even distribution
10
16*
*Jan-Nov annualised
14
chart types
Bar / column
Stacked
No one’s a winner
The Fed says no to nuptials
Mobile operators’ US market share
July 2011, %
0
AT&T
Sprint Nextel
T-Mobile
Verizon
Podemos
69
PSOE
90
30.4
Overall Monthly revenue $79.8m
Oil & gas
PP 123
All mobiles
Global internet-advertising spending, $bn
Islamic State’s finances*, January 2015, $m
350
176 required for majority
Other
Getting sociable
Looting the Levant
Spanish general election 2015, Seats won
Confiscation
20.1
Electricity
Tax
14.3
12.0
4
Ciudadanos 40
10.0 31.4
11.1 16.8
ERC 9
DiL 8
EAJ-PNV 6
Others 5
Smartphones
44.1
9.6
30.5
12.9
Paid search
Display
Classified
Online video
FORECAST
150
Deir al-Zor governorate Monthly revenue $8.7m
0
2
4
6
8
100
10
Sources: Ministry of the Interior; El País
8.0
50
Monthly spending $5.8m
Source: comScore
For stacked bars with few categories or labelling issues, consider
removing tick marks and labelling each segment value.
200
Fighters’
salary
Military
camps
Treasury
Media
Islamic police
Social services
Sources: IHS
0
2008
10
12
14
16 17
Source: ZenithOptimedia
*Estimates
More in than out
United States, merchandise-trade deficit
% of GDP
China
Rest of world
0
-1
-2
COLOUR ORDER
1
2
3
4
5
-3
6
COLOUR
OVERIDES
-4
How do you feel about Donald Trump as
the 2016 Republican nominee for president?*
Intra-European* migrants living elsewhere
2014, % of total by destination country
Romania
Portugal
0
Poland
Germany
20
40
EU-28
60
Italy
Britain
80
100
Other
Switzerland
Germany
Spain
France
Italy
Britain
Source: European Commission
-5
Trump’s troops
Movers and shakers
*Including EFTA
You may need to swap in other
colours for charts with more than
4 categories
Use grey for ‘other’ /
‘dont know’ etc
Enthusiastic
Dissatisfied
Not sure
Satisfied
Upset
0
White men
no college
White women
no college
White men
college educated
Non-white men
college educated
White women
college educated
Non-white men
no college
Non-white women
college educated
Non-white women
no college
Sources: YouGov;
CCES; The Economist
% of total voters
2012
20 40 60 80 100
22
24
16
3
17
6
4
7
*5,773 registered voters surveyed
June 4th to July 9th 2016
If categories form meaningful groups,
use colour to reinforce that
-6
1990
95
2000
05
Sources: US Census Bureau;
US Bureau of Economic Analysis
10
16*
*January-September
15
chart types
Lines
Side-by-side
Penumbral
Transports of delight
Where Tokyo leads
US shadow housing inventory*
Units, m
2.0
Period beginning
January 1989 ( Japan)
Coming down everywhere
London’s population and journeys
Ten-year government-bond yields, %
Suicides per 100,000 population
2001=100
January 1999 (US)
1.5
8
Bus
0
2006
07
Source: CoreLogic
08
09
10
11
*Foreclosed and delinquent
homes not yet on the market
140
Tube
4
0.5
2
5
10
120
Population
Car
0
1
13
2001 03
Years since start
Source: Thomson Reuters
05
07
09
Lithuania
Hungary
160
6
1.0
50
180
11
13
Sources: Transport for London; ONS; The Economist
30
Russia
20
Japan
South Korea
US
100
Britain
80
15
1960
70
40
80
10
0
90
2000
13
Sources: ONS; Eurostat
Standard colour order
1 line
2 lines
3 lines
4 lines
COLOUR ORDER
1
2
3
4
5
6
HIGH CONTRAST
ALTERNATIVES
Exodus
Christians, as % of population
20
Egypt
Syria
15
Palestine
10
Israel
Iraq
5
U.A.E
Saudi
Arabia
0
1910
70
2010 25*
Available years
Source: “Ongoing Exodus: Tracking the
Emigration of Christians from the Middle
East” by T. Johnson and G. Zurlo, 2015
*Forecast
5 lines
6 lines
16
chart types
Lines
Stacked
Foreign hoards
The big shift
Developing-country currency reserves
$trn
6
Other
developing
countries
4
2
Tax havens’ share of US overseas
corporate profits, %
Netherlands
Bermuda & other Caribbean
Luxembourg
Ireland
Singapore
Switzerland
60
50
40
30
China
20
0
2002
04
06
08
10
10* 11*
Source: IMF
*Forecast
0
1982
90
95
2000
05
10 13
Source: “The Hidden Wealth of Nations”,
by Gabriel Zucman, University of Chicago Press, 2015
COLOUR OVERIDES
COLOUR ORDER
1
2
3
4
5
6
1
2
3
4
5
In limbo
Emerging middle class
Households in temporary homes
England, ’000
Private rental
LA/HA*
Working population by economic class, emerging and developing countries*, 2011$ at PPP†, bn
3.0
Private leased by LA/HA*
Hostel
Bed & breakfast
Developed middle
class and above over $13
100
80
60
$5.01 to $13
$3.11 to $5
0
2002 04
Source: DCLG
06
08
10
12
1.5
Near poor
20
1998
2.0
Developing middle class
40
Alternative colour scheme for use
where categories are chronological
or where primary colour scheme
doesn’t work
2.5
1.0
Moderately poor
$1.90 to $3.10
15
*Local authorities
and housing associations
0.5
Extremely poor
less than $1.90
0
1991
Source: ILO
95
2000
05
10
15‡ 16‡
*Excluding most Western developed countries †Purchasing-power parity ‡Estimate
17
chart types
Thermometer
charts
Standard colour order
3 lines
2 lines
The horrible science
Use of specific “adjective” per million words
in student reviews on RateMyProfessors.com*
one
two
COLOUR ORDER
1
2
3
4
5
100
200
300
400
two
“Horrible”
0
The horrible science
Use of specific “adjective” per million words
in student reviews on RateMyProfessors.com*
one
three
100
200
300
400
6 lines
two
three
four
0
100
“Horrible”
The horrible science
Use of specific “adjective” per million words
in student reviews on RateMyProfessors.com*
one
200
300
400
two
three
four
five six
0
100
200
“Horrible”
Mathematics
Economics
Computer Science
Business
Biology
Philosophy
English
Psychology
History
Communication
Mathematics
Economics
Computer Science
Business
Biology
Philosophy
English
Psychology
History
Communication
Mathematics
Economics
Computer Science
Business
Biology
Philosophy
English
Psychology
History
Communication
Mathematics
Economics
Computer Science
Business
Biology
Philosophy
English
Psychology
History
Communication
Source: Ben Schmidt, Northeastern University
Source: Ben Schmidt, Northeastern University
Source: Ben Schmidt, Northeastern University
Source: Ben Schmidt, Northeastern University
dot terminals
6
The horrible science
Use of specific “adjective” per million words
in student reviews on RateMyProfessors.com*
one
0
“Horrible”
4 lines
The horrible science
Use of specific “adjective” per million words
in student reviews on RateMyProfessors.com*
one
two
three
“Horrible”
0
100
200
300
Mathematics
Economics
Computer Science
Business
Biology
Philosophy
English
Psychology
History
Communication
Source: Ben Schmidt, Northeastern University
Use as alternative when
lines are unclear
400
300
400
Ilex will plot up to 6 colours but
any more than 4 categories is
probably too many and you
should have a rethink
chart types
4 categories
The best disinfectant
Standard dot
4px width
50% opacity
use where general trend
is more important than
individual point
highlight dot
4px width
100% opacity
use to label outliers /
important data points
2
3
4
5
House prices
20
India
Colombia
Mexico
15
Sweden
Singapore
10
0
0
-2
0
2
4
Employment
Sources: Freddie Mac;
US Bureau of Labour Statistics
6
8
trend lines
1px stroke
dashed 3px, 1px
20
Vitality and the vote
United States, health metrics against swing to Donald Trump
By county
Change in Republican margin
over Democrats, 2012-16, % points
50
Region
Northeast
Midwest
West
South
25
Voting
eligible
population
20
40
60
80
100
Corruption-perceptions index score, 2014
100=least corrupt
0
Sources: Transparency International;
Open Knowledge Foundation
-5
*At least
100,000 population
Same weight/colour
for x and y ticks
use black for zero
baseline only
-25
-50
20
WORSE HEALTH
30
40
50
Index of county health metrics*
Sources: Atlas of US Presidential Elections; Census Bureau;
IPUMS, University of Minnesota; Institute for Health Metrics
and Evaluation; The Economist
60
BETTER HEALTH
70
*Weighted index of obesity, diabetes,
heavy drinking, physical exercise and
life expectancy, 2010-12
Where colour categories become difficult to distinguish,
consider highlighting the most significant part of the story
Connected scatter
6
40
0
5
Category dot
0.3px stroke
50% opacity fill
use for bubble charts
to differential colours
COLOUR ORDER
1
Q1 1990 - Q1 2007
Q1 2012 - Q1 2016
Open-data
index score, latest
100=most open
100
Britain Denmark
80
US
60
Corruption and open data
United States, housing and employment
Metro areas*, average annual change, %
MORE REPUBLICAN
Divergent
LESS REPUBLICAN
Scatter plot
Standard scatter
Bubble chart
Right nation
Health spending and life expectancy at birth
OECD countries
2013*
2003
Life expectancy,
years
84
France
Japan
2013 average 80.5
78
Britain
By county
82
Germany
Chile
Vitality and the vote
United States, health metrics against swing to Donald Trump
United States
76
Change in Republican margin over
Democrats, 2012-16, % points
50
Jefferson, OH
MORE REPUBLICAN
Chart elements
sub title should summarise
chart, save specific units
for axis labels
Voting
eligible
population
Knox, OH
25
Midwest
74
Turkey
2013
average
$3,453
0
Source: OECD
0
72
1
2
3
4
70
5
6
Health expenditures per person
at purchasing-power parity, current prices, $’000
To avoid obscuring the connecting lines
and labels, axis lines can be broken
7
8
9
*Or latest
LESS REPUBLICAN
18
-25
-50
20
WORSE HEALTH
30
40
50
Index of county health metrics*
Sources: Atlas of US Presidential Elections; Census Bureau;
IPUMS, University of Minnesota; Institute for Health Metrics
and Evaluation; The Economist
60
BETTER HEALTH
70
*Weighted index of obesity, diabetes,
heavy drinking, physical exercise and
life expectancy, 2010-12
On larger / complicated scatters, use explanatory
labels to make the correlation clear
19
chart types
Tables
Chart elements
Standard table
With colour highlight
Divided by a dozen
Greatest hits
headline econ sans cnd medium 7.5/9
body econ sans cnd light 7.5/9
paragraph space 4pt
Company
detail text 75k
Airbnb
Rents out places
to stay for local hosts
0.5px 100k
0.3px 50k
Policy choices in our political proximity model
Largest Y Combinator-funded startups
Value*
$bn
Date of
joining
$25.5
2009
Dropbox
File-sharing and
storage in the cloud
$10.0
Stripe
Software for selling
from within apps
$5.0
Zenefits
Online HR and
payroll services
$4.5
Instacart
Grocery collection
and delivery service
$2.0
2012
Docker
Platform to manage
distribution of software
$1.1
2010
Sources: CB Insights;
CrunchBase
2010
2013
New stimulus measures
Social
Business tax cuts
Which comes closest to your position on abortion?
Infrastructure spending, state
and local government aid
Would you support/oppose a constitutional
amendment allowing states to ban gay marriage?
2007
Obama’s jobs bill
$bn
70
140
Unemployment insurance and training
62
Should gun-control laws be more or less strict
than they are now?
Payroll-tax cut
Economic
Paid for by
Do you support/oppose raising the federal
minimum wage to $15 per hour?
Limiting deductions for
upper-income earners
What should be done to reduce the federal
budget deficit?
Treating carried interest as ordinary income
18
Limiting oil and gas company tax benefits
40
Do you support/oppose a single-payer
health-care system?
Removing corporate-jet tax breaks
Total
447
405
Total*
Should our taxes provide free college tuition?
Source: White House
Foreign policy
175
3
467
*Figures may not sum
due to rounding
Do you think the US government should be doing
more or less in its fight against terrorism?
Do you support/oppose sending ground combat
troops to fight IS in Iraq and Syria?
*Latest funding round
Do you favour/oppose building a wall along the
border between the United States and Mexico?
Use 75k text
to differentiate
explanatory text
Would you say NAFTA has had a positive/negative
effect on the US economy?
Is the government doing enough to combat
climate change?
Use alternating row colours
to help with reading
3pt internal padding
Which comes closest to your position on abortion?
Table with integrated charts
What to expect
Asylum processes, selected countries, 2014
Accepted Minimum wait before
%
permitted to work
Applications*
Country Decisions made
Mainly from
%
Germany 173,070
Syria 23
Serbia / Kosovo 14
Eritrea 8
42
Syria 40
Stateless 10
Eritrea 8
77
Serbia / Kosovo 51
Afghanistan 21
Syria 16
9
Eritrea 13
Pakistan 11
Syria 8
39
Mexico 12
China 11
El Salvador 8
30†
China 19‡
India 13‡
Pakistan 10‡
19†
97,415
Sweden
75,090
40,015
Hungary 41,370
5,445
Britain
31,260
26,055
United
States
121,160
71,765†
Australia 8,960
13,198†
Sources: UNHCR; government statistics;
The Economist
State benefits
per month
3 months
€374
Immediately
Without restrictions
€226
9 months
€86
Maximum
Working only in a
reception centre
12 months
€217
Only jobs where gov’t sees a
shortage (medics, engineers)
6 months
Nil
In practice, 92% of
applicants wait longer
Most applicants cannot
work as they are in detention
€275
*From UNHCR 2014 report
†From UNHCR Statistical Database ‡2012-13 figures
Where table data will benefit
from visualising , use small
labelled bar charts etc.
Use colour highlight
with inverted text to
pull out key details
20
chart types
Standard colour order
Pie / doughnut
1
2
3
4
5
6
COLOUR ORDER
1
2
3
4
5
6
The scramble in Africa
Naan bigger
Tata’s workforce in Britain, September 2011
’000
Jaguar Land
Rover 19.0
Tata Steel
19.4
Other
Others
0.6
Taj (hotels)
0.4
Tata Chemicals 0.5
Source: Tata
Total
45.4
Goods trade with Africa, 2013, $bn
Foreign direct investment in Africa, 2012, $bn
China* 156.4
Rest of world
453.8
United States 72.1
Rest of world
38.1
Britain
7.5
United States
3.7
France 61.6
Tata
Consultancy
Services 4.9
TGB (drinks) 0.7
Total
$1.02trn
Brazil
25.3
Japan 25.3
Sources: UNCTAD; IMF
India 57.0
Spain 48.1
Italy 40.9
Germany 40.4
Britain 34.4
Total
$59.3bn
Italy
3.6
China
2.5
France
2.1
India
1.8
*Including Macau and Hong Kong
Where linking lines get too crowded,
key the labels with small colour block
NOTE: Use with caution.
Should probably be abandoned
in favour of stacked bar
if over 4 categories
21
chart styling
Double-scale
charts
3 lines on left-hand axis
1 line on each axis
Out of steam
Golden triangle
Britain, railways
National rail track
’000 km
AXIS 1
1
2
text
50
40
40
30
30
20
20
10
10
0
0
1955
70
80
90
2000
Total trilateral trade
$trn
1.25
Mexico
1.00
Canada
60
0.75
40
0.50
United States
20
0.25
0
0
1994
2000
05
10
14
Venezuela, % change on a year earlier
Consumer prices, year-end
GDP
20
800
15
600
10
400
5
200
0
0
-5
-200
-10
-400
-15
-600
-20
15
-800
2004 06
Sources: Thomson Reuters; IMF
Source: Department for Transport
08
10
12
Sources: IMF; Reuters
14
16*
*Preliminary estimate
Always choose the axis
colour order that will
visually associate the
labels best with the
corresponding line
Double scales can be good at showing correlations and are economical with space.
But they can also be confusing/misleading.
Here are some things to avoid when considering a double scale
Avoid breaking the
scales without good
reason
Quantifying QE
AXIS 2
1
2
80
60
50
COLOUR ORDER
100
70
Privatisation begins
60
Chavismo in action
NAFTA countries’ exports
to each other, % of total
Passenger kilometres
bn
70
Use Econ Sans Cnd
Regular, instead of
light, for coloured
y-axis labels
line and column
Euro against the
dollar, $ per €
What lies beneath
Ten-year governmentbond yields, %
1.4
1.3
1.2
Italy
1.1
1.0
5
4
90
150
3
60
120
30
90
0
60
30
30
60
0
1
0
2015
Source: Thomson Reuters
2002 04
06
08
10
Avoid mixing disparate
measures to force visual
correlation
The Zuma years
Big oil companies’ enterprise
free cash flow, $bn
120
2
Euro area
2014
If you are plotting above
and below a zero line
make the zero lines align
Oil price
Brent, $ per barrel
180
12
14
Source: BCG
16
South Africa
Rand per $, inverted scale
6
SACCI Business
Confidence Index,
2015=100
120
9
110
12
100
15
90
18
80
2008 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
Sources: Thomson Reuters; SACCI
Broken scale distorts data
misaligned baselines
Index value + inverted scale
If you cannot conform to the above rules try splitting the chart into panels or indexing the variables
22
chart styling
Blob heads
Bubble
Number block
Where bubbles are large enough
fit numbers inside
To avoid awkward alignment, if
most numbers won’t fit, put them
outside bubble and align text right
The Big Mac index
January 2016
January 2017
6.4
Norway
5.8
Sweden
5.3
Brazil
5.1
United States†
5.1
Euro area‡
4.1
Britain
3.8
Japan
3.3
Fill
c22.5 k15
100% multiply
-10 -5
0
5
10 15
$bn
Domestic
Foreign
October 2016
China
261
India
26
Germany
58
0
100
200
300
400
Johannesburg
943
Nigeria
29.3
Mauritius
6.2
288
Nairobi
19.9
Britain
44
Namibia
South Korea
32
Canada
23
Brazil
32
France
36
Italy
31
Australia
21
Japan
62
Spain
18
United States
3.0
China§
2.8
Netherlands
18
Vietnam
2.6
Russia
21
India**
2.5
Source: GBTA
Mexico
2.3
Russia
2.2
BRVM*
Source: World Federation
of Exchanges
2.3
Market cap, $bn
11.6
*West African
regional exchange
*At market exchange rates
( Jan 11th 2017) †Average of four cities
‡Weighted average of member countries
§Average of five cities **Maharaja Mac
Arrow placement
Econ Sans Cnd reg 7.5/9.5pt
Box: c22.5 k15 100% multiply
2 line
% change on a year earlier
Turkey
Text blocks
1 line
Can be used
with column or
thermometer charts
20 40
Switzerland
Sources:
McDonald’s;
The Economist
A secondary data
variable added as
area-sized bubbles
or number boxes
Number of companies
listed on stock exchanges
Business travel spending, 2014
Big Mac price*, $
-80 -60 -40 -20 0
Starting small
Up in the air
Local currency under (-) / over (+) valuation
against the dollar, %
If number range or positive / negative
values rule out bubbles, revert to
equal-sized number blocks
ECB announces QE
ECB announces
QE beginning
ECB announces QE
12pt height / 6pt horizontal padding
23pt height / 6pt horizontal padding
numbers
Econ Sans Cnd reg 7pt
6.4
Horizontally or vertically centred
ECB announces QE
ECB announces QE
Minimum 6pt in from box edge
if necessary
23
chart styling
Where colour is being used
to categorise data, use grey
for timeline labels
Timelines
Non-data timelines
The Philippines
Selected events
Ferdinand
Marcos
elected
1965
Marcos ousted
Benigno Aquino Jr.
assassinated on
return from US exile
75
New constitution
“People
Power”
revolution
Marcos imposes
martial law
70
80
Duterte first
elected mayor
of Davao
85
Marcos
90
Corazon
Aquino
Coup attempts
PRESIDENTS
Data timeline
95
Ramos
Wife of Benigno Jr
Re-elected
Asian
financial
crisis
starts
Joseph Estrada resigns
during impeachment
proceedings
Corazon Aquino
dies
Estrada
Ms Arroyo
convicted of
arrested
corruption
2000
05
10
US/EU oil sanctions
Oil production, m bpd
6
4
Iranian revolution.
Shah overthrown
Iran signs
Non-proliferation
Treaty
Iran/Iraq war
Obama offers to “extend a hand” to Iran
Son of Corazon
& Benigno Jr
USS Vincennes shoots
down Iranian civil airliner
0
Duterte President Elect
1965
70
75
80
85
90
95
200
For timelines tied to a
dataset, break the y-axis
lines to avoid chart area
becoming too crowded
IS takes
Mosul 100
US
invades
Iraq
0
2000
05
10
15
Supreme leaders
Ruhollah Khomeini Ali Khamenei
Reza Shah Pahlavi
Use thin alternating-colour bars to mark out time
periods. Key repeated events, like coup attempts,
to avoid duplicating text labels
300
US invades Afghanistan
1516
Benigno
Aquino III
GDP, $bn
2005 prices
Iran branded part
of “axis of evil”
2
Estrada Gloria
Macapagal
Arroyo
Source: The Economist
More than an oil giant
Iran
* † Khamenei
Sources: World Bank;
Thomson Reuters
Rafsanjani
Presidents
Khatami
Ahmadinejad
Rouhani
*Banisadr †Ali Rajai
I wanna be adored
Presidential election
Parliamentary election
Approval rating of Vladimir Putin and the Russian government, % polled
Putin is:
PM
Causation of a caliphate
Civilian death toll, ‘000:
Iraq
American-led invasion of Iraq.
Saddam Hussein toppled.
Assad accused of helping
foreign fighters enter Iraq
Egypt bombs IS affiliate in Libya
Syria
Zarqawi killed in
American bombing
Haider al-Abadi replaces Maliki. American-led coalition
starts bombing IS in Iraq, and later in Syria
“Great recession”
Financial crisis; GDP shrinks 8%
2
1
75
Russian
government
50
AntiGovernment
Protests in
Bolotnaya
Georgia war
3
Syrian uprising
begins
PRESIDENT
Rouble
Annexation
collapses
of Crimea
100
Start of Syrian
civil war
Vladimir Putin
6
4
Withdrawal of American
forces from Iraq
Bashar Assad
comes to
power in Syria
PRIME MINISTER
Beslan
School
Siege
5
Start of American
surge in Iraq
Nuri al-Maliki
comes to power
as Iraq’s PM
PRESIDENT
Moscow
Theatre
siege
Second
Chechen
War
2000
01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08
09
10
11
12
13
25
0
14
15 16
Sources: Levada Centre; The Economist
0
1998
99
2000
01
02
03
Zarqawi pledges allegiance
to Bin Laden, forming
al-Qaeda in Iraq
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
founds jihadist group in Iraq
Al-Qaeda bombs American
embassies in Tanzania and Kenya
04
05
06
07
08
09
Islamic State of
Iraq (ISI) founded
10
11
12
13
14 15
ISI founds Jabhat
al-Nusra in Syria
Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) founded. Splits with
Jabhat al-Nusra and al-Qaeda, then captures Raqqa in eastern Syria
Label styles
IS takes Mosul, races towards Baghdad and declares a caliphate
Sources: Iraq Body Count; Violation Documentation Centre in Syria; The Economist
Boko Haram declare allegiance to IS
To distinguish from plotted
data, use dotted lines for
labels on bar charts
Specific date events
0.5px stroke, arrowhead 21, 50%
Time periods
24
chart styling
Timelines
mobile versions
3-column print timeline
web desktop version at 332pt
Mexican waves
Mexican waves
Mexico, selected government-bond yields, %
First Mexican
Foreign Loan
Mexico, selected government-bond yields, %
Porfirio Díaz
Becomes President
Reform French
war occupation
MexicanAmerican war
1914
Default
1929
Crash
Mexican Oil
Nationalisation
Debt
Crisis
Peso
Crisis
log scale
400
200
100
Mexican
revolution
First Mexican
Foreign Loan
MexicanAmerican war
French
occupation
1914
Default
Mexican Oil
Nationalisation
Debt Peso
Crisis Crisis
Mexican
revolution
Reform
war
40
20
10
1929 Crash
Porfirio Díaz
Becomes President
log scale
400
200
100
40
20
10
4
2
1
1824 30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Sources: Global Financial Data; Thomson Reuters; Haver Analytics
1900
10
20
30
40
50
60
Periods of default on external debt
70
80
90
2000
10 15
4
2
1
1824
40
50
60
70
80
90 1900 10
20
Mexico, selected government-bond yields, %
Rotate timeline and run
vertically on mobile.
10
100
Mexico, selected government-bond yields, %
Periods of war / revolution
400 log scale
First Mexican
Foreign Loan
40
50
Mexican-American war
60
Reform war
French occupation
70
With often-lengthly
text labels in fixed
positions on the chart,
timelines present a
unique challenge
for condensing to
mobile.
Porfirio Díaz
Becomes President
80
90
Works well where labels
are relatively evenly spaced
and where the data relates
to specific labels, i.e. oil
nationalisation in this
example
1
2
3
4 5
log
scale
400
200
100
40
20
10
4
2
1
1824
1900
50
1900
50
2000 15
Periods of default on external debt
Mexican
revolution
10
1914 Default
20
30
1929 Crash
40
Mexican Oil
Nationalisation
50
1 First Mexican Foreign Loan
2 Porfirio Díaz Becomes President
3 Mexican Oil Nationalisation
4 Debt Crisis
5 Peso Crisis
60
Sources: Global Financial Data;
Thomson Reuters;
Haver Analytics
70
80
Debt Crisis
90
Peso Crisis
2000
15
1
10
Sources: Global Financial Data;
Thomson Reuters;
Haver Analytics
100
60
70
80
90 2000 10 15
*First new (non-restructured) bond issued for 50 years
Compress horizontally,
number labels on chart
and list below.
Mexican waves
Periods of default on external debt
1
50
Mobile option 2
Mexican waves
1824
40
Periods of default on external debt
*First new (non-restructured) bond issued for 50 years
Sources: Global Financial Data; Thomson Reuters; Haver Analytics
Mobile option 1
30
400
*First new
(non-restructured)
bond issued for 50 years
*First new
(non-restructured)
bond issued for 50 years
25
chart styling
Miscellaneous styles
Number boxes
Highlight panels
Use where multiple charts are
referenced in text
Working-age population*, 2015=100
FORECAST
120
United
States
Japan
European
Union
1
Ten-year government-bond yields, %
Period beginning:
January 1989 ( Japan)
100
80
China
40
8
1950
75
2000
25
50
75
Source: United Nations
Population Division
4
Accounting
scandal
CEO resigns
$4.6bn
record loss
label text
econ sans cnd light
7/7pt
500
400
300
Westinghouse
Write-down
2015
100
0
16
17
Source: Thomson Reuters
Market income
plus transfers
plus transfers less taxes
If there are only
1 or 2 points, and they
are key to the chart
meaning, use colour/
medium font
World war II
starts
GREY c15, k10
Years since start
Mutti’s malaise
German approval of Angela Merkel, % polled
80
Euro
Crisis
1979
Source: CBO
World war II
ends
Econ sans bold 7.5pt
c22.5 / k15
1
10pt
07
09
11
13
110
80
90
95
Broken scales
60
50
40
Mutti’s malaise
15 16
German approval of Angela Merkel, % polled
80
70
60
50
40
Migrant
Crisis 30
11
13
15 16
Source: ARD DeutschlandTREND/infratest dimap
*Adjusted for household size
DON’T BREAK SCALE ON BAR/COLUMN CHARTS - USE THERMOMETER INSTEAD
German approval of Angela Merkel, % polled
09
10 13
30% tint
Mutti’s malaise
07
05
70
For web-only
charts, use print
bkgd colour for
highlights
2005
0.5pt red line on
index line
c12, m80, y60, k0
70
80
2005
90
2000
40
Source: ARD DeutschlandTREND/infratest dimap
Euro
Crisis
100
c10, m70, y50
Migrant
Crisis 30
2005
For highlights that
are central to the
message of the
chart ,use colour
85
120
50
60
10pt
130
Use when breaking y-axis on line, thermometer and scatter charts
not needed on indexed, negative scale or inverted scales
70
6pt
150
140
13
Source: Thomson Reuters
5pt diameter black
circle on index point
United States, median real household
income*, 1979=100
German
approval of Angela Merkel, % polled
1pt
200
LIGHT 6.5PT
UPPERCASE
Easing the pain
0.5pt stroke
arrow 21
600
*Aged 15-64
0
10
CB&I Stone
& Webster
write-down
Toshiba, share price, yen
Mutti’s malaise
2100
2
5
Westinghouse woes
20
6
1
For secondary
information, like
forecast or
estimate, use
neutral style
60
January 1999 (US)
Index charts
Use to mark specific dates and points on axis
Who will fill the jobs?
Where Tokyo leads
Highlight labels
30
60
50
40
07
2005
07
09
09
11
13
30
15 16
Source: ARD DeutschlandTREND/infratest dimap
11
13
broken scale symbol
black 0.4 stroke
6pt width
centred between baseline
and first y-axis tick
15 16
x axis baseline ends
at last tick mark