Column & Bar Charts

A column chart is used to compare data values of related categories. It can also be used to compare data over a period of time. Value of each category is encoded by the length of the column. Since all columns start from the same baseline i.e., zero, it is easy to compare them against each other.

A bar chart represents quantitative information. The chart consists of horizontal bars of equal width with lengths proportional to the values they represent, which makes the comparison easier. One axis of the chart plots categories and the other axis represents the value scale.