D3 vs Google Charts vs Canvas.js

[umeshamin]

I’m trying to decide on a library to use for creating graphs and charts, and am choosing between these three libraries. Backwards compatibility is a concern, but so is sustainability. I would like to continue using whichever library I chose for several years.

I have very limited experience with D3, and can appreciate its capabilities. However, I’m finding it difficult to get my head around using, and it feels like I’m hacking my way into solutions. Also, I haven’t been able to satisfyingly implement a chart that can be resized with the website, but that’s probably my own lack of experience.

Google Charts seems like a strong contender because of its usability and backwards compatibility with IE7 and 8.

Canvas.js also send very user-friendly, but I worry about compatibility with older browsers, and it cannot (to my knowledge) pull data from a file or database connection.

[sandeep]

@Umeshamin,

Thanks for considering CanvasJS.

While d3 is a great library, its meant for a broad range of visualizations. CanvasJS is a specialized library for charting.
D3 has a steep learning curve whereas CanvasJS is very easy to use, even for beginners.

Google Charts are not self-hosted and you need to pass data to Google Servers(cannot be used offline or over the intranet). Chart applications that do not comply with their Terms of Service may be removed. Charting is probably a small piece for Google and you never know how long the product will continue to be in the market. Previously they have killed a lot of products, including visualization tool like Google Fusion Tables.

CanvasJS was first released in March 2013 and there have been continuous enhancements since then. Selling commercial licenses helps us run a long term sustainable company. CanvasJS is self-hosted and you also get full source code of the library. CanvasJS also supports older browsers like IE6, IE7 & IE8. You can also pull data from a file or database connection.

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Sandeep
Team CanvasJS