A pie chart is a circular statistical graphic divided into slices to illustrate numerical proportions. Each slice represents a category's contribution to the whole.
5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test
Pie charts are best used for displaying data that adds up to a whole, typically percentages.
Each slice of the pie chart represents a proportion of the total and is usually labeled with either its percentage or its category name.
The size of each slice is proportional to the quantity it represents within the dataset.
Pie charts are less effective when there are many categories or when the differences between categories are small.
They can be misleading if not properly scaled or if too many slices are used, which can clutter the visual representation.
Review Questions
What type of data is best visualized using a pie chart?
How does the size of each slice in a pie chart relate to its data value?
Why might pie charts be less effective for datasets with many categories?