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APPLIES TO: Power BI Desktop Power BI service
The basic area chart (also known as layered area chart) is based on the line chart. The area between axis and line is filled with colors to indicate volume.
Area charts emphasize the magnitude of change over time, and can be used to draw attention to the total value across a trend. For example, data that represents profit over time can be plotted in an area chart to emphasize the total profit.
Note
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Basic area charts are a great choice:
To follow this tutorial in Power BI Desktop, download the Retail Analysis Sample PBIX file. If you'd like to use the Power BI service, download the Retail Analysis PBIX file, and then upload it to a workspace in the Power BI service.
These steps will help you create an area chart that displays this year's sales and last year's sales by month.
In Power BI Desktop, open the Retail Analysis Sample PBIX file in report view . In the Power BI service, open the Retail Analysis Sample PBIX file and select Edit.
Select to add a new page.
From the Fields pane, select Sales > Last Year Sales, and This Year Sales > Value.
Convert the chart to a basic area chart by selecting the Area chart icon from the Visualizations pane.
Select Time > FiscalMonth to add it to the Axis well.
To display the chart by month, select the ellipses (top right corner of the visual) and choose Sort by > FiscalMonth. To change the sort order, select the ellipses again and select either Sort ascending or Sort descending.
For information about using the Filters pane, see Add a filter to a report.
To highlight one particular area in your chart, select that area or its top border. Unlike other visualization types, if there are other visualizations on the same page, highlighting a basic area chart doesn't cross-filter the other visualizations on the report page. However, area charts are a target for cross-filtering triggered by other visualizations on the report page.
Try it out by selecting your area chart and copying it to the New Stores Analysis report page (CTRL-C and CTRL-V).
Select one of the shaded areas of the area chart and then select the other shaded area. You'll notice no effect on the other visualizations on the page.
Now select an element. Notice the effect on the area chart—it gets cross-filtered.
To learn more, see Visual interactions in reports
Events
Mar 31, 11 PM - Apr 2, 11 PM
The ultimate Microsoft Fabric, Power BI, SQL, and AI community-led event. March 31 to April 2, 2025.
Register todayTraining
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