Skip to main content

Create and customize scatter and bubble charts in Insights

Learn how to create and customize scatter and bubble charts in Insights to compare hotel performance measures, add size and color, and identify clusters and outliers.

Written by Ashley Dehertogh

Scatter and bubble charts help you compare two measures at once, spot unusual results, and see whether values tend to move together. In Insights, you can use a scatter chart to position each result by two measures, then add point size and color to turn it into a bubble chart with more analytical context.

For example, you could compare occupancy and ADR across properties, size each point by accommodation revenue, and color the points by brand or region. This makes it easier to identify properties with similar occupancy but materially different rates or revenue contribution.

In this article:

  • When to use a scatter or bubble chart

  • How to configure the X- and Y-axes

  • How to add color and point size

  • How to customize point shape, fill, and opacity

  • How to use labels and tooltips

  • How to interpret the result without overstating what the chart proves

If your chart editor looks different: Open the Tab menu and select Test the new chart editor. Review the preview, then select Use the new chart editor. You can switch back from the same menu for now, but we recommend becoming familiar with this editor because it is the direction chart building in Insights is moving.

Choose between a scatter and bubble chart

A scatter chart and a bubble chart use the same basic structure:

  • The X-axis positions each point horizontally using one measure.

  • The Y-axis positions each point vertically using a second measure.

  • A dimension identifies what each point represents, such as a property, market segment, booking channel, or stay month.

A scatter chart gives every point the same size. Use it when the relationship between the X- and Y-axis measures is the main focus.

A bubble chart varies the size of each point using a third measure. Use it when magnitude provides important context—for example, when you want to compare ADR or occupancy while also showing which properties generate the most accommodation revenue.

Create the chart

  1. Open a workbook and build or open the analysis you want to visualize.

  2. Include the dimension that identifies each point. For a portfolio comparison, this would commonly be Property Name.

  3. Include the two measures you want to compare, such as Occupancy and ADR.

  4. Switch from the results table to the chart view.

  5. Select the Scatter mark.

  6. Place one measure on the X-axis and the other on the Y-axis.

Choose the axes according to how you want readers to scan the chart. For an occupancy-and-ADR comparison, placing occupancy on the X-axis makes movement from lower to higher occupancy read from left to right, while ADR increases from bottom to top.

Time fields use a continuous time axis and display chronologically. Other fields follow the ordering applied to the analysis.

Add analytical context

Use color to distinguish groups

Add a field to Color when the points belong to meaningful groups, such as brand, region, market segment, or booking channel.

Use a categorical field when each group should have a distinct color. A numeric field instead creates a continuous color scale, which can help show how another measure varies across the chart.

Avoid adding color when it does not answer a specific question. Too many colors make clusters harder to interpret and can obscure the relationship between the two axis measures.

Use size to create a bubble chart

In a scatter layer, add a measure to Size to vary the area of each point. The chart becomes a bubble chart.

Choose a size measure that adds decision-making context rather than repeating an axis. For example:

  • X-axis: Occupancy

  • Y-axis: ADR

  • Size: Accommodation Revenue

  • Color: Region

  • Point: Property Name

This view helps distinguish a high-ADR, high-occupancy property with a large revenue contribution from a property occupying a similar position but contributing much less revenue.

Size is available only for scatter layers. If you change the layer to a bar, line, or area mark, its size setting is removed.

Customize the points

Open the point styling controls to adjust how each series appears.

  • Size changes the fixed size of points when a measure is not controlling bubble size.

  • Shape lets you use circles, squares, diamonds, triangles, or crosses to distinguish series.

  • Fill switches between filled and hollow points.

  • Opacity makes overlapping points easier to distinguish.

Shape and fill are especially useful when color alone is not enough. For example, using both color and shape to distinguish regions makes the chart easier to interpret for readers who cannot reliably distinguish every color.

Hollow points and reduced opacity can also reveal points that would otherwise be hidden inside a dense cluster. Use these controls to improve readability, not simply to introduce more visual variation.

Add labels and tooltips

Labels

Add a field to Label when readers need to identify particular points without hovering. For a portfolio comparison, Property Name is often the most useful label.

Labels can become difficult to read when points cluster closely together. If the chart is crowded, label only the most important series or rely on the tooltip for detailed identification.

Tooltips

Add fields to Tooltip to provide context when a reader hovers over a point. Fields appear in the order shown in the tooltip section.

For an occupancy-and-ADR chart, useful tooltip fields might include property name, accommodation revenue, RevPAR, room nights, and the comparison period. Keep the tooltip focused on information that helps explain why the point is in that position.

Read the chart carefully

Look for patterns such as:

  • Direction: Do higher values on the X-axis generally appear alongside higher or lower values on the Y-axis?

  • Clusters: Do properties, segments, or periods form groups with similar performance?

  • Outliers: Which points sit far away from the overall pattern and deserve investigation?

  • Magnitude: In a bubble chart, are the largest contributors concentrated in one part of the chart?

A visible relationship does not prove that one measure caused the other. For example, a group of properties with higher ADR and lower occupancy may reflect market position, property type, seasonality, or commercial strategy. Use the chart to identify where to investigate, then review the relevant breakdowns and time periods before drawing a conclusion.

Things to know

  • Scatter and bubble charts require two numeric measures to position the points meaningfully.

  • Size can be configured only for a scatter layer.

  • Categorical color fields produce separate colors; numeric color fields produce a continuous scale unless their color type is changed.

  • Dense clusters can hide overlapping points. Adjust opacity, shape, fill, or point size to improve visibility.

  • Labels may be hidden when they overlap. Use tooltips when showing every label would make the chart unreadable.

  • Charts with many points can become difficult to interpret. Filter to a relevant portfolio, period, or category when the full result obscures the pattern.

Did this answer your question?