All techniques
Size & scale
The area illusion
Twice the value, four times the ink.
a.k.a. pictogram inflation · one-dimensional data, two-dimensional icons
Scale an icon’s or circle’s height by the data and its area grows by the square. A value that doubled looks quadrupled — and in 3D, octupled. Your eye judges the ink, not the radius.
How to spot it
- Icons or bubbles that balloon dramatically for modest changes.
- Compare the labelled values against how big the shapes feel.
The honest version
Scale area — not width and height — to the value. Or retreat to boring, honest bars.
In the gallery
No exhibits charged with this — yet.
The wall is still being hung. When a chart pulls this trick, it'll be exhibited here.
Browse the gallery