Forum Discussion
Line Chart – Step Change Not Clearly Visible for Small Value Differences
Hi bchappidi,
Thankyou danextian Ritaf1983, for you helpful insights.
The main issue seems to be with the data itself. In your example, there’s a noticeable difference between the two datasets, such as Test A and Test B. For Test A, the value changes over time are larger (for instance, "+2 std dev" increases from 6.63% to 11.99%), making the step changes more apparent. On the other hand, Test B shows only slight changes (like 10.34% to 10.63%), so the step line appears almost flat, even though it is still changing.
Also enable the Data Labels option in the line chart. This will display the exact values at each point, making even small changes easier to see.
Thank you.
Hi bchappidi
It's a bit difficult to fully understand from your post what the data represents and what the exact analytical goal of the chart is, so I’ll focus strictly on the visual/technical aspect.
The issue you're experiencing — where small step changes "disappear" — typically happens due to large proportion gaps between minimum and maximum values on the Y-axis. This flattens smaller variations and makes them visually negligible.
There are two classic visual techniques to make even subtle changes stand out:
1. Use a dot/marker chart instead of a line chart
As shown in your first screenshot, when the values are close together, our brains are better at spotting small shifts in individual data points rather than changes in a smooth line.
2. Break the chart into small multiples with independent Y-axes
As in your second image — by giving each measure its own visual and its own Y-axis, each line is evaluated in relation to itself, making small step changes much more visible and meaningful.
The pbix with the example is attached
If this post helps, then please consider Accepting it as the solution to help the other members find it more quickly
Thanks for your response. Unfortunately, neither of the options fixed the issue I'm facing.
Let me clarify the analytical requirement a bit more.
The goal is for users to visually identify when a static input (like Tracking Error) changes, by seeing a clear step change in the line graph as the standard deviation (STD) values are calculated based on these static inputs.
Portfolio: TEST B
Static values are blow — for example:
from Jan 2019(starting month), Tracking Error = 1.50%
from oct 2021 on wards New Tracking Error = 3.00%
This results in a change in the calculated STD values. In the graph (as shown in the sample file/report I shared), this is clearly displayed as a step change, allowing users to visually identify when a new static input has been applied.
Portfolio: TEST A
Also had a change in static values/inputs , but the difference in the resulting STD values is small. Despite the change, the line appears continuous and smooth, so users can't clearly see that a change occurred.
What I need is for the line graph to show a step change when a new static value is applied in a given month, even if the calculated STD values (-1 STD, +1 STD, -2 STD, +2 STD) are only slightly different from the previous month.
Thank you!