Top free JavaScript charting libraries

Data is all around us. We use it to optimize performance, service delivery and efficiency. However, raw numbers are not always the best way to convey information. People are more likely to retain any data you provide them if you present it to them in a visual format rather than textual format. This makes diagrams an indispensable tool for sharing information.

JavaScript offers many free libraries that you can use to create charts on your website. In this article, we will create a list of the best free JavaScript charting libraries and provide a brief overview of their features to help you make an informed choice.

1. Chart.js

When thinking about drawing charts on a website, one of the first libraries that comes to mind is Chart.js. Two of the biggest advantages of using this library are that it is very easy to learn and integrate into your website, and it allows you to create eight common types of charts: line chart, bar chart, radar chart, bubble chart, scatter chart, Area, pie and polar chart charts. You can also display more than two chart types on the same chart.

Animated demo by Roseclad.

The library uses the HTML5 canvas element to render all charts, and these charts are responsive by default. This means they will adapt to changes in screen size. Different aspects of the chart can also be animated using the out-of-the-box methods provided by the library.

2. Chartist.js

The Chartist.js library is another easy-to-use solution for those who want to create their own charts with the help of JavaScript. There are some similarities between Chart.js and Chartist.js, but also some fundamental differences.

Chartist demo by Ian Whitfield.

This library is lightweight and responsive, just like Chart.js. It is also easy to learn and supports all basic chart types like line charts, bar charts, pie charts, etc. This library does not have any external dependencies that you must load for the chart to work.

One big difference between Chart.js and Chartist.js is that the latter uses SVG to render its charts. All charts are divided into many subtypes. For example, you can create a simple line chart as well as a line chart with a filled underlying area or a bipolar line chart.

Chartist.js is strictly focused on providing functionality for rendering charts. This means you don't get built-in functionality for event handling, displaying labels, etc. However, it's relatively easy to add them yourself.

3. D3.js

D3.js library is the abbreviation of data-driven document and is one of the heavyweight libraries in the field of data visualization. You can use this library to visually represent your data in any way you like. This also includes standard chart types.

Jahid Hssan’s D3 demo.

The biggest advantage of this library is the power and flexibility you get when creating any chart. This library allows you to create almost anything you can imagine to represent your data. You're not limited to common chart types. The library uses a mix of technologies like SVG, Canvas, and HTML to create any visual element.

This much flexibility in rendering means there will be a steep learning curve to use all the features this library has to offer. There are about 30 modules and more than 1,000 methods to help you get the job done.

4. C3.js

Some people may be excited about using D3.js to create charts on their website, but they may be discouraged by the steep learning curve. What if I told you there is a solution to this problem?

The C3.js library provides a middle ground, the charts you create still use D3.js under the hood, but you don't have to spend too much time writing code to do it or learn every detail of the D3.js library. This is a great solution for people who are primarily interested in creating charts based on D3.js.

Beat Temperli’s C3 demo.

Three features that make this library useful are its ease of use, customization options, and the control you have over the graphs that are rendered. This library is basically a wrapper around D3.js, so it does all the heavy lifting required to create charts.

The library also provides custom classes for each element it renders, making it easier for you to provide your own styles. Finally, there are quite a few callbacks you can use to control the behavior of your chart, even after the chart has been rendered.

5. Smoothie Chart

Frappe Charts is an amazing open source library that helps you create stylish and responsive charts with ease. You don't need to load any additional dependencies to render the chart.

Presentation by Kamal Dev.

The library comes with many built-in chart types such as bar, line, area, pie and donut charts. You can also create some percentage-based charts that show the shares of different items, similar to a pie chart, but on bars instead of circles. You can also create heatmap charts, similar to the repository contribution charts GitHub displays.

One of the things you will love about this library is the scope of customization it offers. The tooltips that come with the library are great. You can also annotate the diagram by marking different lines and areas. There are many configuration options available, and you can even modify the data points after they have been rendered.

6. Plotly.js

Plotly.js is also a free and open source JavaScript library with an extended list of features. The library also contains Python and R modules in case you want to draw some graphs in those languages.

Demo from plotly.

Plotly is built on D3.js and stackgl. However, unlike D3, the developers of Plotly focused specifically on making it easier to use and draw common chart types fairly quickly. This is ideal for people who are looking for many different chart types. Plotly helps you create 40 different types of charts, covering everything from basic line, bar, and scatter plots to statistical charts like histograms and 2D density plots.

This library has built-in event handling capabilities and can handle click, hover, and selection events, etc. It also provides many other configuration options and useful functions such as zooming in and out, panning, resetting, etc. Plotly.js allows you to make charts editable or use your own locale to display text in labels.

7. ApexCharts

ApexCharts describes itself as a modern JavaScript charting library for building interactive charts using a simple API. Creating charts using this library is actually a simple process. You just pass all the required data, such as the chart type, labels, and the dataset to be plotted as an object with key-value pairs, and the library will take care of rendering everything.

Demonstration by Reuben Prol.

Some other notable features of this library include the ability to create different charts and then synchronize them. Changes you make to one chart will be reflected in the other chart. There are many options for you to interact with the chart. You can zoom in and out, pan, or scroll the data up and down.

Available chart types include line charts, bar charts, pie charts, donut charts, radar charts, candlestick charts, etc. You can also mix different chart types together, such as showing bar, line, and area charts overlapping each other. You can also add your own annotations and dynamically update chart data.

8. uPlot

uPlot JavaScript charting library claims to be a small and fast solution for those who want to display a large number of data points without any adverse impact on performance. They also provide speed comparisons with some popular charting libraries on their GitHub page.

One amazing performance metric is that the library can plot approximately 150,000 data points in 135 milliseconds. Other features include very fast and responsive zoom and hover functionality. The following CodePen demo creates a chart with 100,000 data points.

Presentation by Stephen Wicklund.

Some useful features of this library include multiple y-axes, scales, and grids, as well as different types of scales (such as linear and logarithmic). You can use this library to create types such as line, bar, and area charts. You can also customize the appearance of your chart using properties such as stroke, fill, and dashes.

However, there are a few things that may prevent you from using this library. The huge performance gains come at a price. The library does not provide any built-in transitions and animations. There is also no built-in behavior to handle scrolling and zooming behavior. However, plugins exist that can provide you with this functionality.

Final Thoughts

We’ve covered eight popular and free JavaScript charting libraries that try to meet different types of needs. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages, so you can choose the one that suits you and meets all your requirements. Chart.js is great if you want something simple and easy to use, for example, or create more advanced charts using Apex Charts.

Check out some of the other demos the library has posted on its page and see which of them offer functionality you like.

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