Vega-Lite Ridgeline Plot
A ridgeline plot (aka 'joy plot') — stacked density curves with overlapping y-extent so the result reads like a mountain range. Vega-Lite produces this with a `density` transform per group plus a faceted `area` mark, with a small negative offset on each row's y-axis so adjacent r
Template details
- chart
- ridgeline
- joy-plot
- kde
- distribution
- vega
- vega-lite
When to use this template
Ridgeline plots excel at revealing patterns and shifts across numerous distributions when comparing their shapes and central tendencies is critical. An analyst would use this visualization to quickly identify trends, anomalies, or changes in the underlying characteristics of a quantitative variable across many distinct categories, especially when individual distribution shapes (e.g., multimodal, skewed) are important.
- Datasets with one quantitative variable and one categorical grouping variable.
- Grouping variables with many distinct categories (e.g., 10+).
- Quantitative variables where distribution shape (skew, modality) is important.
- Categorical groups that have a natural ordinal or temporal order.
- Sufficient data points per group to generate meaningful density estimates.
- Comparing relative shifts and changes in distribution across groups.