# \[Discussion\] Comparison between Visual Builder (Time Series), Line Chart and Timelion Chart

**URL:** <https://discuss.elastic.co/t/discussion-comparison-between-visual-builder-time-series-line-chart-and-timelion-chart/185783>\
**Category:** Kibana\
**Tags:** timelion\
**Created:** [June 14, 2019, 7:30am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/discussion-comparison-between-visual-builder-time-series-line-chart-and-timelion-chart/185783 "2019-06-14T07:30:43Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Zany](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/zany/32/50113_2.png) [@Zany](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Zany)\
**Post date:** [June 14, 2019, 7:30am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/discussion-comparison-between-visual-builder-time-series-line-chart-and-timelion-chart/185783/1 "2019-06-14T07:30:43Z")

</div>

In Visualize Mode, **Visual Builder** (Time Series), **Line Chart** and **Timelion Chart** are available to the users for building time-series visualizations. As I am new to Kibana, I would like to welcome the community to share views and experiences working with these charts.

**Questions:**

- What is the difference between these chart types in terms of **sophistication level of analytics** and **visual customization**?

- What is the **determining factor** for choosing one chart type over the others in the context of building time-series visualization?

> **[Visual Builder (Time Series)](https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/kibana/current/time-series-visual-builder.html)**

**Tabs:** Data, Panel Options, Annotations  
**Special Feature:** can switch between 6 different visualization types

 ![Visual%20Builder](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/original/3X/5/a/5a27ac04c1c34e1d785e320e50e594904d222e80.png)

> **[Line Chart](https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/kibana/current/xy-chart.html)**

**Tabs:** Data, Metrics & Axes, Panel Settings  
**Special Feature:** can filter query by Kibana Query Language (KQL) / Lucene, can inspect data

 ![Line](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/original/3X/b/0/b0b0412b0274d65751898ab6672babd10c37c214.png)

> **[Timelion Chart](https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/kibana/current/timelion.html)**

**Tabs:** Interval, Timelion Expression  
**Special Feature:** inline documentation

 ![Timelion](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/original/3X/b/1/b1960f9e10d64052eb021b879083efe58f50e175.png)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![LeeDr](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/leedr/32/9289_2.png) [@LeeDr](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/LeeDr)\
**Post date:** [June 24, 2019, 3:42pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/discussion-comparison-between-visual-builder-time-series-line-chart-and-timelion-chart/185783/2 "2019-06-24T15:42:51Z")

</div>

In Canvas you can also use SQL queries;

 ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/original/3X/7/a/7a78b5e21e924041778b81862d08db94ad778aa6.png)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Zany](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/zany/32/50113_2.png) [@Zany](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Zany)\
**Post date:** [June 25, 2019, 2:03am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/discussion-comparison-between-visual-builder-time-series-line-chart-and-timelion-chart/185783/3 "2019-06-25T02:03:08Z")

</div>

Oh wow, I'm going to try that out. Thanks for sharing.

**Update:** there are more charts over at Canvas too!

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/original/3X/1/a/1ac57faf039f6b580b3f104ef42a2a89e41014de.png) [@system](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/system)\
**Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 2:10am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/discussion-comparison-between-visual-builder-time-series-line-chart-and-timelion-chart/185783/4 "2019-07-23T02:10:14Z")

</div>

This topic was automatically closed 28 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.