The Component Comparison and its different alternatives

As we discussed in the essential article on Component Comparison, it represents a situation. You need to show an item as a mix of two or more elements. The usual words used with it are: % of Total, Share of, Mix of, Component of, Includes X. You can find it in the world around you every day. Last week, we talked about the Mekko Chart. Today, we take a look at Treemap Charts.

Treemap Chart – Is already 30 years old

The Treemap chart was invented in 1990 by Professor Ben Shneiderman at the University of Maryland. His goal was to visualize large hierarchical datasets efficiently. These datasets often have many branches and sub-branches. The challenge was to fit them within the limited space of a computer screen.

The first use case was visualizing file directory structures to see how much space each folder and file was consuming. This area-based approach enabled a compact and intuitive overview of hierarchical relationships. It made it much easier to spot large and small elements. It also helped find hidden patterns within data structures.

Practical Examples from the Corporate World

Corporate environments often handle massive and hierarchical datasets. These include product portfolios, departmental budgets, sales breakdowns, and asset allocations. The Treemap efficiently summarizes and presents this data in a compact, visual format. They allow executives and analysts to grasp key insights at a glance.

Treemap excels at showing how individual components (such as products, teams, or markets) contribute to the whole. This makes them invaluable for resource allocation, revenue distribution, and market share analysis—core needs for business decision-making.

Practical Tips to Reduce the Disadvantages

There are always creative ways to help yourself avoid the pitfalls, depending again on the story you choose to tell. Not every piece of data is essential, and not everything needs to be visible or communicated. I have added some tips I’ve learned during my professional journey on the right side of the image below.

Are there other alternatives?

Of course, in the future post I am going to talk about:

• Sankey Charts and others

Visualizations we have already talked about:

• 100% Stacked Column Chart
• 100% Bar Chart
• Pie Chart
• Doughnut Chart
• Area Chart
• Mekko Chart

Summary

Treemap charts were invented to efficiently and intuitively represent large, complex hierarchies. Their biggest strengths are space efficiency, high-level pattern recognition, and versatility in visualizing hierarchies and part-to-whole relationships.

However, their limitations include imprecise area comparisons, potential clutter when data is dense, and unsuitability for non-hierarchical or time-based data. Treemap excel in interactive business intelligence, market analysis, and portfolio management dashboards.

For more straightforward or time-tracking applications, other visualization types may be preferable. Properly used, Treemap can transform overwhelming datasets into actionable insight at a glance.

There is always a chart for your story. You need to understand the basic concepts, principles, and language used. This helps you choose what you need to persuade, inform, inspire, or entertain correctly.

For a free downloadable resource, click the Chart Decision Tree and Compare Visual Guide.