How Do I Create a Waterfall Chart in Qlik Sense?

Creating a waterfall chart in Qlik Sense is a straightforward process that allows you to visualize the cumulative effect of sequential positive and negative values, making it ideal for understanding how an initial value is affected by a series of intermediate changes. This chart is exceptionally useful for financial analysis, showing profit and loss, or illustrating changes over time.

A waterfall chart effectively breaks down a final value into its contributing components, revealing the journey from a starting point to an end point.

Step-by-Step Guide to Building a Waterfall Chart

Follow these steps to construct your own waterfall chart in Qlik Sense:

1. Add a Waterfall Chart to Your Sheet:

   • Open your Qlik Sense application and navigate to the sheet where you want to add the chart.
   • From the Assets panel on the left-hand side, drag an empty Waterfall chart object onto your sheet.

2. Add Your Dimension:

   • Click on the newly added chart object to open its properties panel.
   • In the Dimensions section, click "Add dimension" and select the field you want to use for the breakdown (e.g., 'Month', 'Category', 'Transaction Type'). This dimension will define the segments of your waterfall.

3. Add Your Initial Measure:

   • In the Measures section of the properties panel, click "Add measure".
   • Select or create the first measure. This is typically your starting value or an initial balance. For instance, Sum(StartingBalance).

4. Add Subsequent Measures and Define Operations:

   • Continue to add more measures to represent the changes or components that contribute to the overall total.

   • For each subsequent measure, it's crucial to define its Measure operation in the advanced properties panel. This tells Qlik Sense how each measure should interact with the previous one.

     • Click on the measure you just added in the properties panel to expand its settings.
     • Under Measure operation, choose from the following:
       • Add: The measure's value is added to the previous total. Use this for positive contributions.
       • Subtract: The measure's value is subtracted from the previous total. Use this for negative contributions.
       • Subtotal: This measure will display as a subtotal bar, summing all previous values up to that point. It resets the running total for subsequent measures.
       • Intermediate Sum: Similar to Subtotal, this shows a running sum but does not reset the total for the next measure. It just indicates an interim total.

   • Example:

     • Measure 1: Sum(Revenue) (default: Add)
     • Measure 2: Sum(CostOfGoodsSold) (Measure operation: Subtract)
     • Measure 3: Sum(OperatingExpenses) (Measure operation: Subtract)
     • Measure 4: Sum(NetProfit) (Measure operation: Subtotal)

5. Add Subtotals for Key Milestones:

   • To visually emphasize key intermediate results or the final total, add measures and set their Measure operation to Subtotal. This will create distinct bars that represent the cumulative sum of all preceding 'Add' and 'Subtract' measures. You can place these strategically to show, for example, 'Gross Profit' or 'Net Income'.

Understanding Measure Operations

The flexibility of measure operations is what makes waterfall charts so powerful in Qlik Sense. Here's a quick overview:

Measure Operation	Description	Typical Use Case
Add	The measure's value is added to the preceding sum.	Revenue, Gains, Inflows, Positive Adjustments
Subtract	The measure's value is subtracted from the preceding sum.	Costs, Expenses, Losses, Outflows, Negative Adjustments
Subtotal	Displays the cumulative sum of all previous 'Add' and 'Subtract' measures	Showing intermediate totals like Gross Profit, Operating Income, or the final Net Profit/Loss. Resets the running sum.
Intermediate Sum	Displays the cumulative sum, similar to Subtotal, but does not reset.	Indicating a running total without marking a final segment. Less common in standard waterfalls.

Customization and Styling

Qlik Sense offers various options to customize your waterfall chart for better readability and visual appeal:

• Colors: You can define custom colors for positive, negative, and subtotal bars under the Appearance > Colors section. This helps in quickly distinguishing between gains, losses, and totals.
• Labels and Titles: Ensure your chart title, axis labels, and measure labels are clear and descriptive.
• Legends: Use legends to explain the different bar types if custom colors are applied.
• Number Formatting: Adjust number formats for your measures to ensure consistency and readability (e.g., currency, percentage).
• Sorting: You can sort your dimension to present the changes in a logical order (e.g., chronological for time-based data).

Best Practices for Waterfall Charts

• Logical Flow: Arrange your measures in a logical sequence that tells a clear story.
• Start and End Points: Always include a clear starting point and, if possible, a final total to frame the analysis.
• Clarity: Use clear, concise labels for each measure to avoid confusion.
• Limit Measures: While powerful, too many measures can make the chart cluttered. Focus on the most impactful changes.
• Data Consistency: Ensure your data is clean and consistent to prevent misinterpretations.

By following these steps and leveraging the customization options, you can create effective and insightful waterfall charts in Qlik Sense to visualize cumulative effects and pinpoint key drivers of change.

For more detailed information on creating and customizing charts in Qlik Sense, you can refer to the official Qlik Sense Help documentation.