Power BI: Creating a Time-Based Animated Scatter Chart

A time series scatter chart allows you to visualize how data points (e.g., products) evolve over time.
In this exercise, you will animate product performance over a sequence of dates to show how Quantity and Revenue change month by month.

This visualization is especially useful for:

• Tracking sales trends over time

• Identifying growth or decline patterns in products

• Presenting dynamic storytelling visuals in dashboards

Using the Play Axis feature in Power BI’s Scatter Chart, the report will automatically play through time, animating changes across the selected period.

Download https://archive.org/download/powerbi_dataset/powerbi_ui_example.xlsx

Step 1 – Load the Dataset

1. Open Power BI Desktop.

2. Go to Home → Get Data → Excel.

3. Select the file powerbi_ui_example.xlsx.

4. In the Navigator window, check:

   • Sales

   • Products

   • Date (for Date_ID field)

5. Click Load.

Step 2 – Build Relationships

1. Go to the Model view (third icon on the left panel).

2. Verify these relationships:

   • Sales[ProductID] → Products[ProductID]

   • Sales[Date_ID] → Date[Date_ID]

3. If not automatically linked, create them manually by dragging one field to the other.

Step 3 – Create a Scatter Chart

1. Go to Report view (first icon on the left).

2. In the Visualizations pane, select the Scatter Chart icon.

3. Resize the visual to occupy the center of your canvas.

Step 4 – Assign the Fields

In the Visualizations pane, drag the following fields into the respective areas (see image 1):

Steps:

1. Drag Product_Name → Legend.

2. Drag Quantity → X Axis.

3. Drag Revenue → Y Axis.

4. Drag Revenue → Size.

5. Drag Date_ID → Play Axis (label 1 in image).

You will see a timeline slider automatically appear below the chart.

Step 5 – Run the Animation

1. Click the Play button on the timeline (label 2 in image).

2. Watch as the scatter chart animates through time (see second image/GIF):

   • Each bubble represents a product.

   • The bubble movement shows changes in Quantity and Revenue over time.

   • The size and position of each bubble adjust dynamically for each Date_ID (e.g., month or period).

Step 6 – Format the Chart

1. Select the chart → click the Format (paint roller) icon.

2. Update:

   • Title: “Quantity, Revenue, and Revenue by Product_Name and Date_ID”.

   • Data Colors: Assign distinct colors to each product.

   • Background: Set to light color for contrast.

   • Bubble transparency: 50–70% to view overlapping points.

   • Data Labels (optional): Enable for better tracking.

Step 7 – Analyze the Animation

As the chart plays:

• Observe which products move upward (increasing revenue).

• Identify products shifting rightward (increasing quantity sold).

• Watch bubble growth or shrinkage, showing total revenue changes.

• Compare consistent vs. fluctuating performers over time.

Step 8 – Save Your Report

1. Click File → Save As.

2. Name it “Product_Performance_TimeSeries.pbix”.