Wikipedia:Graphics Lab/Resources/Charts
 | This is an information page. It is neither an encyclopedia article nor one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines; rather, its purpose is to explain certain aspects of Wikipedia's norms, customs, technicalities, or practices. It may reflect differing levels of consensus and vetting. |
mw:Extension:Chart is being rolled out across some WMF wikis, with the aim of replacing the now deprecated mw:Extension:Graph. This page seeks to collate information on when, how and with what standards to create charts in articles on the English Wikipedia.
When a chart is appropriate
On Wikipedia, charts serve to present data in a manner that is both informative and accessible. Often, including raw data tables is not only impractical, but also contributes little to the reader's understanding. Charts should only be used when they demonstrably improve a reader's understanding of a topic. The appropriateness of a chart is up to an editor's discretion, though graphs should not be used purely to illustrate an article or fill areas that lack sutiable media.
When not to use a chart
- Where prose is written around (or heavily with reference to) the contents of a chart, it is better to either not include it at all or integrate statistics into the prose from a reliable source.
- To replace a data table. Whilst data tables may be problematic, replacing them solely with charts has other issues (for example, sources may be more difficult to find).