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When does the dot plot beat the donut for a survey breakdown past 14?

Use the dot plot once a survey breakdown passes 14, because the eye can compare lengths faster than angles. The donut still works for a handful of shares of one total. The chooser states that limit before you draw, and the compare page puts the two forms side by side so the switch is visible.

At a glance

What the chooser is forThe chooser answers the survey breakdown before a canvas exists. It tells you…
What compare addsCompare shows the dot plot and the donut as a pair, with the same survey…
Ranking versus shareIf the sentence is “who is larger,” the dot plot wins even below 14. If the…
Stop before decoration — dot-beats-donutA 3D edge or a legend with 14 colors will not rescue a donut that already…

Pick the dot plot when the survey breakdown has more than 14 parts or when people must rank them. Keep the donut only for a single total cut into a few shares. Open the chooser to see the avoid note, then the compare page if you still want both drawings.

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Pick the dot plot when the survey breakdown has more than 14 parts or when people must rank them. Keep the donut only for a single total cut into a few shares. Open the chooser to see the avoid note, then the compare page if you still want both drawings.

What the chooser is for

The chooser answers the survey breakdown before a canvas exists. It tells you to prefer the dot plot once you pass 14, and it names the donut as the form to avoid when the count gets large.

What compare adds

Compare shows the dot plot and the donut as a pair, with the same survey breakdown in mind. Use it when a colleague still wants the familiar donut after the chooser already said 14 is too many.

Ranking versus share

If the sentence is “who is larger,” the dot plot wins even below 14. If the sentence is “how the whole splits,” a donut can stay, but only while the parts stay few and labeled.

Stop before decoration — dot-beats-donut

A 3D edge or a legend with 14 colors will not rescue a donut that already failed the count. Change the form to the dot plot first, then open the studio.

This page chooses a dot plot or a donut for a survey breakdown around 14. It does not draw the chart and it does not change how the studio sanitizes a shape.

Questions

Is 14 a hard stop for the donut?
Treat 14 as the point where a survey breakdown becomes safer as a dot plot. A smaller donut can remain if every share is labeled and the total is the story.
Should I open the studio before the chooser?
No. The chooser picks the dot plot or the donut for the survey breakdown. The studio draws the winner. Starting on a blank canvas past 14 often redraws the weaker form.
Where do I see both forms of the survey breakdown?
On the compare page. The chooser is the rule; compare is the pair. Neither one replaces a 14-part check of your own table.

Open the chart chooser · Compare chart forms

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