Heatmap visualization (SmartViz)

Important

This feature is in beta and subject to change. Reach out to support with any issues.

The Heatmap visualization arranges your data into a grid and colors each cell by an intensity value. Use it to spot patterns across two dimensions at once, such as hour against day of week, or service against region.

When to use a heatmap

A heatmap needs three columns: two to form the grid, one to color the cells. It works best when both grid dimensions are categorical and bounded, so the cells stay large enough to read.

The classic fit is time against time. Hour of day against day of week, colored by request count from AWS API Request Count, makes recurring patterns visible in a way a line chart flattens out.

Where it struggles is high cardinality. A 200-row grid is a wall of color with no readable labels. Aggregate with Shaping or SQL Analytics first, or use a Table with the Progress renderer when exact numbers matter more than the pattern.

Try it out

Change the settings below and see how the chart updates. Select a dataset from the dropdown to see different use cases.

Interactive example
Showing

Ticket volume by day and hour, where values only ever climb. A single-hue sequential scheme is the honest choice when nothing can go negative.

MonTueWedThuFri9am12pm3pm6pm12181561319167131916714211891115124421 tickets
Heatmap: Highest value is 21 tickets at Thu, 12pm

Heatmap settings

Data mapping

Setting
Description
X Axis
Select the column forming the grid's columns. Choose a categorical or time column.
Y Axis
Select the column forming the grid's rows. Choose a categorical or time column.
Color / Value
Select the numeric column determining each cell's intensity.

Series appearance

Setting
Description
Cell Border Width (px)
Enter a width, from 1 to 4, to add a gap between cells using the background color.
Cell Corner Radius (px)
Enter the corner radius for each cell, from 1 to 4.

Color

Setting
Description
Color Scheme
Select the color ramp applied to cell values. Choose from: Default, Blue (Cool), Red–Blue, SquaredUp Blue, or Health.
Show Color Scale
Enable to display the color scale legend showing how values map to colors.
Reverse Color Scale
Enable to reverse the direction of the color scale, so high values take the color low values would otherwise get.

X axis

Setting
Description
Show Labels
Enable to show the category labels along the x-axis.
Label Rotation (°)
Enter the rotation for x-axis labels, from -90 to 90 degrees. Useful when category names overlap.
Show Axis Title
Enable to show the axis title text.
Axis Title
Enter a custom title for the x-axis.

Y axis

Setting
Description
Show Labels
Enable to show the category labels along the y-axis.
Label Rotation (°)
Enter the rotation for y-axis labels, from -90 to 90 degrees.
Show Axis Title
Enable to show the axis title text.
Axis Title
Enter a custom title for the y-axis.

Legend & labels

Setting
Description
Axis Label Font Size (px)
Enter the font size for both the x- and y-axis labels, from 6 to 72.
Show Data Labels
Enable to print the value inside each cell.
Label Color
Choose the text color for cell labels.
Label Font Size (px)
Enter the font size for cell labels, from 6 to 72.
Label Format
Enter an Expression to format the cell label content. Use {{value}}, {{name}}, or a column name. The date, number, and percent helpers are available.

Interactivity

Setting
Description
Data Zoom
Select how to zoom and pan large grids. Choose Slider to add a draggable range control, or Scroll to zoom with the mouse wheel inside the chart.

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