A waterfall chart shows a running value as quantities are added or subtracted. It’s helpful to visualize how an underlying value is influenced by a series of positive and negative changes. The columns are usually encoded using color so that you can quickly identify increments and decrements.
In a waterfall chart, a particular bar is positioned at the end of the previous bar and the baseline is based on whether there is an increase or decrease in the previous value. In Power BI, a positive value is usually represented using a green color and a negative value is represented using a red color. There will be a third color for the end total.
When to use a waterfall chart?
Waterfall charts are a great choice for decision-making when,
- You have to explain a change from one period to the next and also which factors are responsible for the change.
- You have to visualize how much cash you make and spend every month.
- You have to visualise cashflow.
- You have to visualize the number of hired and resigned employees in your company over a period of time.
How to Create a Waterfall Chart in Power BI?
Step 1: First, open Power BI and load the sample data set as shown in the below image.
Step 2: From the visualization pane, select the waterfall chart.
Step 3: Now move to the fields pane, and select the product and sales.
Step 4: Finally, drag and drop the year to the breakdown tab.
This will show the breakdown of product sales for each year. The red bar indicates that there is a drop in sales and the green bar indicates a rise.
Step 5: To make the chart easier to understand, go to the format visual pane and turn on the data label.