ASP.NET MVC Chart Overview

The Telerik UI Chart HtmlHelper for ASP.NET MVC is a server-side wrapper for the Kendo UI Chart widget.

The Chart uses modern browser technologies to render high-quality data visualizations. All graphics are rendered on the client by using Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) with a fallback to Canvas. The Charts support a set of series types such as Bar, Line, Area, Bullet, Pie, Scatter, Bubble, Polar, and others.

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The following image displays the structure of the Chart.

UI for ASP.NET MVC Chart Structure

To see the component in action, check the examples:

Initializing the Chart

The following example demonstrates how to define the Chart.

   @(Html.Kendo().Chart(Model)
      .Name("internetUsersChart") // The name of the Chart is mandatory. It specifies the "id" attribute of the widget.
      .Title("Internet Users")
      .Series(series => {
          series.Bar(model => model.Value) // Create a Bar Chart series bound to the "Value" property.
                .Name("United States");
      })
      .CategoryAxis(axis => axis
          .Categories(model => model.Year)
      )
    )
    public ActionResult Index()
    {
        return View(ChartDataRepository.InternetUsers());
    }

The Chart contains the following building block elements:

Element Description
Title The Chart provides extensive configuration options for its title. See the client-side properties for the Title of the Chart component.
Legend The Chart provides extensive configuration options for its legend. See the client-side properties for the Legend of the Chart.
Chart area The chart area represents the entire visible area of the Chart. See the client-side properties for the Chart Area of the Chart component.
Plot Area The plot area displays the series in the Chart. See the client-side properties for the Plot Area of the Chart component.
Axis defaults The Chart provides default options that are valid for all Chart axes. This element accepts the options supported by categoryAxis, valueAxis, xAxis, and yAxis.
Series The Chart provides various configuration options for its series. The series type is determined by the value of the type field. If a type value is missing, the type is assumed to be the one specified in seriesDefaults.

Basic Configuration

To configure the Chart, pass the configuration options as attributes:

@(Html.Kendo().Chart()
    .Name("chart")
    .Title("Gross domestic product growth /GDP annual %/")
    .Legend(legend => legend
        .Position(ChartLegendPosition.Top)
    )
    .ChartArea(chartArea => chartArea
        .Background("transparent")
    )
    .Series(series =>
    {
        series.Column(new double[] { 3.907, 7.943, 7.848, 9.284, 9.263, 9.801, 3.890, 8.238, 9.552, 6.855 }).Name("India");
        series.Column(new double[] { 4.743, 7.295, 7.175, 6.376, 8.153, 8.535, 5.247, -7.832, 4.3, 4.3 }).Name("Russian Federation");
        series.Column(new double[] { 0.010, -0.375, 1.161, 0.684, 3.7, 3.269, 1.083, -5.127, 3.690, 2.995 }).Name("Germany");
        series.Column(new double[] { 1.988, 2.733, 3.994, 3.464, 4.001, 3.939, 1.333, -2.245, 4.339, 2.727 }).Name("World");
    })
    .CategoryAxis(axis => axis
        .Name("series-axis")
        .Line(line => line.Visible(false))
    )
    .CategoryAxis(axis => axis
        .Name("label-axis")
        .Categories("2002", "2003", "2004", "2005", "2006", "2007", "2008", "2009", "2010", "2011")
    )
    .ValueAxis(axis => axis
        .Numeric()
            .Labels(labels => labels.Format("{0}%"))

            // Move the label-axis all the way down the value axis.
            .AxisCrossingValue(0, int.MinValue)
    )
    .Tooltip(tooltip => tooltip
        .Visible(true)
        .Format("{0}%")
        .Template("#= series.name #: #= value #")
    )
)

Axis Title

You can also add a title to clearly indicate the role of the axis.

    @(Html.Kendo().Chart()
        .Name("chart")
        .Title("Average temperature and humidity")
        .Legend(legend => legend
            .Position(ChartLegendPosition.Bottom)
        )
        .Series(series => {
            series.Column(new double[] { 20, 25, 32 }).Name("Temperature").Axis("temperature");
            series.Column(new double[] { 45, 50, 80 }).Name("Humidity").Axis("humidity");
        })
        .CategoryAxis(axis => axis
            .Categories("Aug", "Sep", "Oct")
            .AxisCrossingValue(0, 3)
        )
        .ValueAxis(axis => axis
            .Numeric()
            .Name("temperature")
            .Title(t=>t.Text("Temperature, Celsius"))
        )
        .ValueAxis(axis => axis
            .Numeric()
            .Name("humidity")
            .Title(t=>t.Text("Relative Humidity"))
        )
    )

UI for ASP.NET MVC Chart with axis titles

Plot Bands

The Chart enables you to configure each axis to display bands with different colors for predefined value ranges. The category index (zero-based) is used as a value for the category axis.

    .ValueAxis(axis => axis.Numeric()
        .Labels(labels => labels.Format("{0:N0}"))
        .MajorUnit(10000)
        .Max(70000)
        .Line(line => line.Visible(false))
        .PlotBands(bands => {
            bands.Add().From(10000).To(30000).Color("#c00").Opacity(0.3);
            bands.Add().From(30000).To(30500).Color("#c00").Opacity(0.8);
        })
    )

UI for ASP.NET MVC Chart with axis plot bands

Global Settings

You may also need to apply global settings that affect all axes. In such cases, use AxisDefaults.

    .AxisDefaults(a=> a
        .Labels(l=>l.Font("16px Verdana"))
    )

Functionality and Features

  • Data binding—You can populate the Telerik UI Chart for ASP.NET MVC with data by binding it to inline data, local data, or remote data.
  • Appearance—Unlike other Telerik UI for ASP.NET MVC components which use only CSS for styling, you can control the appearance of the Chart elements primarily by using JavaScript style options.
  • Scaffolding—The Chart for ASP.NET MVC enables you to use the Kendo UI Scaffolder Visual Studio extension.

Chart Types

The Telerik UI for ASP.NET MVC Chart supports an extensive set of series types.

Chart type Description
Categorical Charts Categorical Charts use a single category axis and a single value axis.
Scatter Charts Scatter Charts display data as points that are defined by the values of their items.
Area Charts Area Charts display quantitative data by using continuous lines that pass through points defined by the values of their items.
Bar Charts Bar Charts display data using horizontal or vertical bars whose length varies according to their values.
Box Plot Charts Box Plot Charts are useful for displaying variations in statistical samples of data and data details in a small space.
Bubble Charts Bubble Charts display data as points with coordinates and sizes determined by the values of their items.
Bullet Charts Bullet Charts represent a variation of the Bar Chart.
Funnel Charts Funnel Charts are suitable for representing stages in a sales process and for showing the amount of the potential revenue from each stage.
Line Charts Line Charts are suitable for displaying quantitative data by using continuous lines passing through points defined by the values of their items.
Pie Charts Pie Charts display data as single-series sectors from a two-dimensional circle which is useful for rendering data as a part of the whole.
Donut Charts Donut Charts are a Pie chart variation with the ability to display data as single-series sectors from a two-dimensional circle.

Referencing Existing Instances

To reference an existing Chart instance, use the jQuery.data() configuration option. Once a reference is established, use the Chart client-side API to control its behavior.

    // Place the following after the Chart for ASP.NET MVC declaration.
    <script>
        $(function() {
            // The Name() of the Chart is used to get its client-side instance.
            var chart = $("#internetUsersChart").data("kendoChart");
        });
    </script>

Next Steps

See Also

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