Analytics / New feature

Bubble chart and sunburst chart
Two new ways to present your reports

Two new chart types have been added to the visualizations you can choose when building or editing reports in Shopify Analytics. You can now compare three metrics at once, or break a total down into nested categories.

On this page
  1. What's actually new (understand it in 30 seconds)
  2. Bubble chart: see three metrics at once
  3. Sunburst chart: break a total down into nested layers
  4. Where does it show up? (the workflow)
  5. Which chart to use, and when
  6. 5 points developers should know
  7. 3 use cases you can apply to your work
  8. A one-line summary for pitches

1What's actually new

Two new chart types have been added to Shopify Analytics: bubble chart and sunburst chart .
They appear when you create or edit a report in the "visualization picker."

Bubble chart

Beyond the X and Y position, it expresses a third metric through the "size of the circle." Plotting three metrics at once makes it easier to spot outliers (points that stand out).

Sunburst chart

The center is the "total," and the further out each ring is, the more granular the nested category. It shows how each part builds up toward the whole, layer by layer.

This update is not about new data becoming available—it's that there are now more ways to present (chart types for) your existing report data . It's a Feature / Admin category update.

2Bubble chart: see three metrics at once

Return rate →(Y axis) Units sold →(X axis) Product A Product B Product C Product D Outlier High sales, but also high returns

A bubble chart X-axis, Y-axis, and circle size overlays three values onto a single point (bubble). For example, plotting "units sold (X) × return rate (Y) × revenue (circle size)" together makes products that sell a lot but also have a high return ratestand out instantly—the kind of outlier that tends to get buried in tables or rankings.

Best for: the relationship between two metrics plus a sense of scalewhen you want to see both at once (e.g., inventory turnover × gross margin × revenue).

3Sunburst chart: break a total down in nested layers

Total revenue Total revenue (center = the whole) Apparel (top category) └ Tops (sub) └ Bottoms (sub) Accessories (top category) └ Bags (sub) Shoes (top category)

A sunburst chart puts the total at the center, and the rings spreading outward represent nested (parent → child) categories. The angle of each segment shows that category's share of the total. It lets you see at a glance "which product category is driving revenue" and "which subcategory within it is making the difference," in awhole → breakdown → further breakdown format, all at once.

Best for: when you want to divide a total across a hierarchy(category → subcategory, region → prefecture, channel → traffic source, and so on). It helps to think of it as a pie chart extended into multiple levels.

4Where does it show up? (the steps)

1

Create or edit a report

Create a new report in Analytics, or open an existing report in edit mode.

2

Open the visualization picker

Two new types appear in the chart-type picker (visualization picker).

3

Choose Bubble / Sunburst

Once selected, that report's data is rendered in the new chart format.

The original announcement gives no detailson the finer conditions such as eligible plans, supported regions, or which report types are available. Check the Help Center (linked below) for specifics.

5Which chart to use, and when

AspectBubble chartSunburst chart
What it's good at Relationships between multiple metrics + spotting outliers Hierarchical breakdown of a total (composition)
Values shown at once 3 metrics X, Y, and bubble size Hierarchy Parent category → child category
Typical question "Which products stand out?" "What is revenue made up of?"
Example Units sold × return rate × revenue Revenue by category → subcategory
Where it appears The visualization picker when creating or editing a report

65 points engineers should keep in mind

1. This is an addition to the "presentation layer"

The data sources and metric definitions haven't changed—there are simply two more ways to render existing report data. You don't need to rebuild existing reports; just edit them and switch the chart type.

2. Bubble charts assume "3 columns"

You need three numeric dimensions: X, Y, and size. For meaningful outlier detection, the key is designing a combination of two metrics whose correlation you want to see plus one metric representing scale.

3. Sunburst charts assume "hierarchical data"

Without a nested parent→child structure (category→subcategory, etc.), it won't show its true value. The more a store's product taxonomy or tag hierarchy is well organized, the bigger the payoff. Data design is the prerequisite.

API ?

4. No mention of APIs or automation

The announcement is only about the report UI in the admin. It says nothing about whether you can specify chart types via ShopifyQL or the Admin API. If you're aiming for programmatic integration, you'll need to verify that separately.

5. "Choosing the right chart" determines analysis quality

With more options comes a greater chance of misuse.use bubble to see relationships and scale, sunburst to see breakdowns, and the classic line chart to see trends over timeSeparating these by use case and baking them into report templates and operational guidelines is the practical move.

73 use cases you can apply on the job

USE CASE 1

Use a bubble chart to surface "products that sell well but also get returned a lot"

Problem
You're only looking at the sales ranking and can't see the real profit erosion caused by returns and exchanges. In a table the metrics are siloed, so you can't grasp the relationship.
Solution
Build a report as a bubble chart of units sold (X) × return rate (Y) × revenue (bubble size), and identify the large bubbles in the top-right as products that need attention.
Impact
You can prioritize quality, sizing-label, and product-page improvements at a glance. This leads to lower return costs.
Technical notes
Return rates are often calculated in a separate report, so the key prerequisite is whether you can bring all three metrics into a single dataset.
USE CASE 2

Show the executive team a "revenue breakdown" in a single sunburst chart

Challenge
Sales by category and subcategory are explained across multiple bar charts and tables, making the overall picture (composition ratio) hard to grasp.
Approach
Adopt a sunburst chart for the regular report that breaks revenue down from total sales to major categories to subcategories.
Result
You can share "which business areas make up what share of the whole, and what's growing within them" in a single view, reducing the time spent explaining things in meetings.
Technical notes
The more cleanly your product categories and collections are organized into a hierarchy, the easier it is to read. It pairs well with a cleanup of your tagging practices.
USE CASE 3

Raise the "readability" of client deliverable reports

Challenge
Reports delivered every month for production and management services are a monotonous repetition of line and bar charts. Insights don't come across, and they don't lead to proposals.
Approach
Redesign the report template by using "relationships = bubble" and "breakdown = sunburst" appropriately. Introduce it with zero implementation (just switching charts in the admin).
Result
Report quality and proposal strength improve with no additional development. You can deliver added value as a differentiated regular report.
Technical notes
Turning standard templates by use case (which report should use which chart) into an internal guide keeps your workflow consistent.

8A one-line summary you can use in proposals

"Shopify Analytics adds two charts: bubble (spot outliers across three metrics) and sunburst (break a total down by hierarchy) .
With zero additional development—just switching charts in the report editor—you can now show relationships and composition ratios at a glance."