← All chart types
time-series family
area
Line chart with the region beneath it filled.
Same trajectory information as a line, with extra emphasis on cumulative magnitude. Sometimes signals "this is a flow" (cash flows, inflows/outflows) where the shaded area carries semantic weight.
When to use
A single series where the cumulative quantity matters. Or to reinforce magnitude visually.
When NOT to use
3+ series stacked (use area-stacked), or precise multi-series comparison (use line).
Rhetorical roles
- evolve
Variants & related
Required primitives
- has_axis_titles
- has_gridlines
Optional primitives
- has_legend
- has_source_note
Common anti-patterns
- rainbow-palette
- occlusion
Disambiguation rules
- Filled region beneath a single line = area.
- Filled regions stacked atop each other = area-stacked.
- Filled region with a separate line on top = combo (set canonical_type_secondary=line).