# Bubble

To learn more about bubble charts and how to create one, please view this [video](https://youtu.be/a3Ca1T41ak8?si=c-B9E4ljnd9GfBcP).

A Bubble chart is a variation of the Scatter Plot. Aggregated data is grouped by dimension into circles displayed on an x/y axis. Additional measures change the size or color of the circles. A Bubble chart can represent up to four measures for your chosen dimensions (x, y, size, and color).

| Features                                                                        | Quantity | Notes                                                                                      |
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| Required [Dimensions](https://docs.heavy.ai/measures-and-dimensions#dimensions) | 1+       | Minimum 1, no limit, null dimensions optional.                                             |
| Required [Measures](https://docs.heavy.ai/measures-and-dimensions#measures)     | 2-4      | Measure 1 = X-Axis, Measure 2 = Y-Axis, Measure 3 = Bubble Size, Measure 4 = Bubble Color. |

Use a Bubble chart to show a correlation between the x measure and the y measure. When you do not expect a correlation, you can use a Bubble chart to understand the distribution and influence of multiple factors.

### # Of Groups

Display up to 100 groups of records. You can enter a value or use the slider to visually set the number of groups.

### Null Dimensions

Choose whether to show or hide Null values for your chosen dimension.

### Color Palette

You can use a custom palette to visually group values in your chart. By default, data points are colored arbitrarily with a spectrum of solid colors. You can choose to arbitrarily color bubbles with 2, 3, or 4 colors. You can also apply colors to individual Dimension values.

If you set the **Color** measure, you can choose a gradient to visually express relative quantitative values.

### Custom Measure Formatting

You can use custom measure formats for the values in your chart. See [Customizing Measure and Date Formats](https://docs.heavy.ai/measures-and-dimensions#customize-formats).

## Bubble Chart Examples

Create a new Bubble chart. Choose a **Data Source**. This example graphs employment statistics for all 50 United States for the years 1980-2015. The data is available at the [University of Kentucky website](http://www.ukcpr.org/data).

*State\_name* is a handy dimension for this data. Use the average *Unemployment\_rate* as the **X Axis**, and the average **Unemployment** total for the **Y Axis**. Increase the **# of Groups** to 50 to create an individual bubble for each state.

![](https://875484548-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FgWRc88gdQeZ7mRBB46Rx%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-ff9289094cbcf8edcbec8a819606c3b6b0bd2de3%2F3_bubble-1.png?alt=media)

California has a significantly higher number of unemployed residents compared with the other states. Bubble charts are a good way to show outliers in a dataset. But that figure might be misleading. One reason for a higher average number of unemployed persons might be the fact that California is the most populous state in the country. Use *Population* as the **Size** measure to create proportionally sized bubbles, based on total population.

![](https://875484548-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FgWRc88gdQeZ7mRBB46Rx%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-b51cf7b5ead829a61fe0e2504bccd2951466647f%2F3_bubble-2.png?alt=media)

You can add *Employment* as the **Color** measure, which casts California in a more favorable light.

![](https://875484548-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FgWRc88gdQeZ7mRBB46Rx%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-bd33868cb427154f4cc822b3293dc9903dfac1a3%2F3_bubble-3%20\(2\)%20\(2\)%20\(2\)%20\(1\)%20\(8\)%20\(1\).png?alt=media)