Overview
A Stacked Bar Chart renders dataset values as bars where each bar combines multiple Measures into stacked segments. The total height of each bar is the sum of the segmented Measures; the segment heights show the composition of that total. Stacked Bar Charts share their entire Properties and Columns configuration with the Bar Chart; only the rendering of multiple Measures differs.
Stacked Bar Charts are authored from Lens → Design → Chart Designer → Visualization → Stacked Bar Chart. A 3D variant is available via the 3D Stacked Bar Chart icon adjacent to the Stacked Bar Chart icon. This page documents the Stacked Bar Chart’s rendering-specific behavior; for property and column configuration, see the Bar Chart PD reference.
When to use it
- Show the composition of a total across categorical values — e.g., revenue broken down by product line across regions, with the bar total representing total regional revenue.
- Compare both the totals and the part-to-whole relationships within them in one visualization.
- Visualize multiple Measures against the same Dimension without using a Multi-Axis chart.
- A 3D rendering of the same Stacked Bar Chart is desired for presentation purposes switchable via the 3D Stacked Bar Chart icon.
Relationship to Bar Chart
Properties and Columns customization on the Stacked Bar Chart is identical to the Bar Chart. The Stacked Bar Chart article does not re-document those settings; readers configuring a Stacked Bar Chart should reference the Bar Chart PD page.
| Properties tab | Title, Legend Position, Zooming and Panning, Tooltip Options, X-Axis, Y-Axis, Multi-Axis, Bar Shape, Background, Label Position, Padding, Cumulative Data, Randomized Color, Miscellaneous (Adhoc Report). | Bar Chart PD → Properties tab |
| Columns tab | Including the Bar-specific Tool Tip, Outline, Gradient, and Label Rotation settings. | Bar Chart PD → Columns tab |
| 3D rendering | Switchable via the 3D Stacked Bar Chart icon. Behavior matches the Bar Chart’s 3D toggle. | Bar Chart PD → Key behaviors (2D and 3D render the same Chart) |
| Multiple Measures rendering | Multiple Measures stack into segments within a single bar per Dimension value, rather than rendering side-by-side as separate bars (the Bar Chart default). | — |
Key behaviors
Rendering is the only structural difference. A Stacked Bar Chart is functionally identical to a Bar Chart with one difference: multiple Measures combine into stacked segments within each bar, rather than appearing as separate bars side-by-side per Dimension value. Every other property like axis configuration, Multi-Axis, Bar Shape, gradient and outline, legend control, and Adhoc Report applies.
Measure color distinguishes segments. Each Measure column on the Columns tab carries its own color. Stacked segments inherit those colors so viewers can identify which Measure is which. With Randomized Color on (Properties tab), segment colors become unpredictable and explicit per-Measure colors are typically preferable on Stacked Bar Charts for legibility.
2D and 3D render the same Chart. The Stacked Bar Chart icon and the 3D Stacked Bar Chart icon switch the rendering mode of the same Chart without changing the data, the Dimension/Measure assignments, or the configured properties.
Multiple Measures expected. Stacked rendering needs at least two Measure columns to show the stacking visually. A single-Measure Stacked Bar Chart will be visually identical to a regular Bar Chart.