Welcome!
These are workshop slides for teaching Datawrapper, created by the Datawrapper team.
Visit this blog post to learn more:
You can use these slides for all kinds of commercial and noncommercial workshops without attributing us. You can also print these slides, but only in a (commercial/noncommercial) workshop context – as soon as you want to sell prints of (parts of) these slides, get in touch with us at support@datawrapper.de.
If you want to use these slides, copy them (File > Make a copy).
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
Version history
Jan 2020: 1.0 (first version), as described in this announcement blog post
Oct 2021: 1.1, updated design of all “module” slides
Nov 2021: 1.2, updated all exercises with our latest Datawrapper features (new annotation tool, new map upload) and up-to-date screenshots
Oct 2023: 1.3, updated the first exercise. It used the dataset “Trust in media reporting”, now it uses “Rural vs urban population”. We made the change because the “Trust” dataset was too outdated to remain in the sample datasets in Datawrapper, so we removed it from there.
December 2025: updated the slides with brand new styles, as well as updated the datasets
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
What you’ll find in these slides
You’ll find four modules and five exercises �on the next roughly 240 slides:
Modules (click on one to go there):
Exercises (click on one to go there):
1 Let’s build a line chart with Worldbank data
2 Let’s build a stacked bar chart
3 Let’s build a choropleth map with IMF data
4 Let’s build a locator map of our city
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
How to give a workshop
We’ve given many Datawrapper workshops over the years and gathered some experience we’re happy to share on the following slides.
You might apply a lot of this advice already, if only unconsciously, but reminders don’t hurt.
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
"Good preparation makes for half the rent" we say in German, which doesn't make much sense, but you get the idea: Prepare well and your workshop will go well.
Be aware of your goals. What should your attendees remember after your workshop? If they just should get an overview of what Datawrapper has to offer, consider demo-ing most features quickly and let your audience watch. If your attendees should be able to visualize data themselves at the end, have attendees follow on their own laptop.
Keep in mind that Datawrapper is just half of data visualization. We found that while Datawrapper is a simple piece of software, the main challenge is to find & download the data for your visualisation, and clean it up. Consider exercises that go the whole way – from data source over clean up to final visualization. If your workshop is to short to do so, give your attendees a list of simple data sources to start with and how-to articles about data cleanup, and your email address / Slack name in case they need help in the future.
Prepare for different levels. While some of your workshop attendees might be Excel pros, others don't even have it installed. When downloading and preparing data is part of your workshop, consider keeping an URL to the polished data handy for the ones that couldn't follow the steps so far.
Leave space for confusion and questions. Everything you're teaching is clear to you (by now), but for your workshop attendees, the content is a lot to take in. Give your attendees 10 second breaks to think through what you’re teaching. Consider deleting a slide here and there, and consider moving the least important exercise to the back (after the "Thank you!" slide), to be flexible.
Leave space for creativity. You will teach different kinds of people: Some love to follow your instruction and won’t explore Datawrapper on their own, and some will like to play around with the options and take creative decisions. Make sure that people on any point of the spectrum feel comfortable: Give plenty of instructions, but also give time and encourage "experiment time" here and there. Many of your workshop attendees will feel more proud of the chart they build when it looks different (e.g. in colors, title, etc.) than the charts the others built.
Advice for preparing Datawrapper workshops
Teach everyone. It’s easy to focus on the people who quickly grasp what you’re saying: They give you the feeling that you’re doing a good job as a trainer. But you will have a bigger impact when teaching people who you might judge as “slow” or “shy”. Make sure everyone (really: everyone) is on the same page.
Happily repeat things what might seem obvious to you and most of the attendees but one or two.
Don't just listen to the attendees in the first row who are heavily nodding when you ask "Everyone there?", but consider asking questions like "Who of you could create these three annotations?" to see who doesn't put their hand up.
Be friendly and approachable. Create a failure-happy, open atmosphere in which workshop attendees feel comfortable asking questions and talking about their problems. Laugh about your own silly mistakes. Smile, have an open body language (remind yourself to not cross your arms all the time during the workshop!).
Encourage questions. Before and during the workshop, encourage attendees to ask questions in between. (I like to say: “If you have questions, please, please ask them. I love questions!”) Nothing distracts an attendee more than a question s/he ponders but doesn’t feel comfortable asking out loud. Questions are often the only feedback you get from the attendees: They tell you what you could explain better or what needs more explanation. Questions will make you at giving workshops in the future.
Be humble & listen. You happen to have more knowledge about Datawrapper, but that doesn’t mean that the opinions and experiences of the workshop attendees are not important. Listen. Thank them for sharing their experience or praise their question: “I’ve never thought about that”, “That’s a great question! You’re right that…”
If you’re in a hurry and need to interrupt, apologize for doing so: “I’m sorry, I’m afraid I need to interrupt you here. We’re running out of time. You have important questions/points there, though. Can we talk about it after the workshop?”
Advice for giving Datawrapper workshops
If attendees bring their own laptops and follow along, there will be stuff that just doesn’t work for them – because they didn’t delete their cache and see an old version of Datawrapper, because they made mistakes while pasting the data, etc. That’s how we deal with them:
The keyboard is lava. Don’t touch the keyboard or mouse of the attendees. People learn best by doing things themselves, so explain which buttons to push, but don’t push them yourself. Only if you need to fix problems with the command line, developer tools or complicated Excel formulas or HTML code – meaning, only if **you don’t want that person to learn** something –, you might use their keyboard. Don’t just grab it, but ask: “Sorry, that seems a bit more complicated. I can quickly fix it – would you mind if I use your keyboard?”
Explain why something needs to be done. Don’t just give instructions, but explain the reasons for these instructions: “We now want to do x. To do so, we first need to y – if you click on this button there, you can see how the chart changes.” instead of: “Click here…yes…now here…ok…now here…”
Treat attendees and their problems with respect. Be polite. Don’t make them feel like they are an annoyance to you because they have a problem or haven’t figured out things as quickly as others have. Communicate that you’re more than happy to help. (“Could you have a look?” – “Yes, sure, no problem! I’ll be with you in a second.”). Build rapport with a smile and with agreeing with them (“You’re right, we should fix that.”). In most cases, they will sit. Try to sit down next to them instead of bending over them. In the best case, the attendee is on your eye-level or above your eye-level, but never below.
Take care of individual problems, but don’t spend too much time on them. In the best case, you have an assistant in the workshop who can help out and take care of individual problems. If you’re giving the workshop alone, try to fix the problem quickly. (You will be able to do so most of the time.) If that’s not possible, tell the attendee that you’ll continue for now, but are happy to have a look at the problem later (e.g. during an exercise or during the break).
Sometimes, other attendees are happy to help. Let them, and encourage them** to do so: Admire their skills & knowledge or thank them. Don’t interrupt them, just add information if necessary.
Advice for helping individuals during Datawrapper workshops
Introduction
to Datawrapper
Introduces Datawrapper and its core features: Responsiveness, hover effects, themes, pricing, users.
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
Visualizing Data with Datawrapper
Your role
Speaker name
45 min
About Datawrapper
Overview of maps
75 min
Overview of charts & tables
75 min
Resources
15 min
What is Datawrapper?
and let’s create a locator map and a choropleth map
and let’s create a line chart and a stacked bar chart
and time for questions
Agenda
45 min
About Datawrapper
Overview of maps
75 min
Overview of charts & tables
75 min
Resources
15 min
What is Datawrapper?
and let’s create a locator map and a choropleth map
and let’s create a line chart and a stacked bar chart
and time for questions
Agenda
Your name
What you’re doing
Datawrapper is a web application
Upload data
Edit chart
Publish
1
2
3
Upload data
Edit chart
Publish
1
2
3
Upload data
Edit chart
Publish
1
2
3
Publish your visualizations for Web
zeit.de
Datawrapper examples
spiegel.de
Datawrapper examples
nytimes.com
Datawrapper examples
Various online publications
Datawrapper examples
Datawrapper visualizations are interactive
Datawrapper visualizations are interactive
Datawrapper visualizations are responsive
Datawrapper visualizations support dark mode
Other features of Datawrapper
Other features of Datawrapper
Other features of Datawrapper
Datawrapper visualizations can be customized to your style
Export your visualizations for Print
Free plan
Export your visualizations for Print
Custom & Enterprise plans
Export as vector formats to edit further
Export for Print
Export as vector formats to use in print publications
Export for Print
Collaborate in teams with shared folders and archive
Collaborate in teams with comments
Collaborate in teams with live editing
Collaborate in teams with edit history
Datawrapper vis types
Shows some chart types you can build, all map types (choropleth, symbol, and locator map), and table features.
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
45 min
About Datawrapper
Overview of maps
75 min
Overview of charts & tables
75 min
Resources
15 min
What is Datawrapper?
and let’s create a locator map and a choropleth map
and let’s create a line chart and a stacked bar chart
and time for questions
Agenda
What can you create with Datawrapper?
Charts
Maps
Tables
What can you create with Datawrapper?
Charts
Maps
Tables
Line Charts
Create charts in Datawrapper
Line Charts
Create charts in Datawrapper
Stacked Bars
Create charts in Datawrapper
Dot Plots
Create charts in Datawrapper
Multiple Donuts
Create charts in Datawrapper
Scatter Plots
Create charts in Datawrapper
Scatter Plots
Create charts in Datawrapper
Scatter Plots
Create charts in Datawrapper
Scatter Plots
Create charts in Datawrapper
What can you create with Datawrapper?
Charts
Maps
Tables
With colored rows and columns
Create tables in Datawrapper
Color cells by category
Create tables in Datawrapper
Add Bar and Line Charts
Create tables in Datawrapper
Add images
Create tables in Datawrapper
Heatmaps
Create tables in Datawrapper
Make it searchable
Create tables in Datawrapper
What can you create with Datawrapper?
Charts
Maps
Tables
45 min
About Datawrapper
Overview of maps
75 min
Overview of charts & tables
75 min
Resources
15 min
What is Datawrapper?
and let’s create a locator map and a choropleth map
and let’s create a line chart and a stacked bar chart
and time for questions
Agenda
Let’s build a line chart
with Worldbank data
Covers the whole process from the data to a visualization with fancy annotations. Includes cleaning up the data, although Excel skills are not necessary. Prepare the data set beforehand and hand them out as Google Sheet link if you want to shorten the exercise and/or make it easier.
Difficulty: 3 / 5
Time: 20-30 min when demoing / 40-90 min when attendees follow along
Exercise 1
Dataset: The Worldbank dataset about unemployment in all countries between 1991-2019. We prepared the exercise so that the resulting chart shows unemployment in European countries, but the exercise is built in a way that the resulting chart can compare the unemployment rates in any country.
Focus: Line chart settings, cleaning up data for use in Datawrapper, how to use colors, annotations and highlight ranges to make a strong statement with a chart. Also touches on: How to navigate the Worldbank Data Portal, the difference between data file types (CSV, Excel, XML), why and how to use transpose, why and how to test for mobile readers, number formats, how to write a chart title, share & embed settings after publishing.
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
This is what your workshop attendees will build in this exercise:
Exercise 1
Let’s build a line chart
with Worldbank data
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
Go to data.worldbank.org
Go to sheets.new
1st step: Remove the rows above the header
2nd step: Remove unnecessary columns
3rd step: Remove unnecessary rows
Ready to copy & paste to Datawrapper!
Go to datawrapper.de
Let’s build a
stacked bar chart
Short exercise to show the different available Datawrapper chart types while talking about the essentials of chart making like responsiveness and colors.
Difficulty: 2 / 5
Time: 10-20 min when demoing / 30-60 min when attendees follow along
Exercise 2
Dataset: The Datawrapper sample dataset “Rural and urban population”
Focus: Which chart types Datawrapper offers and when to use which one, how to use colors to make charts understandable, stacked bar chart settings.
Also touches on: Pie/Donut chart settings, why and how to use transpose, why and how to test for mobile readers, number formats, share & embed settings after publishing.
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
This is what your workshop attendees will build in this exercise:
Exercise 2
Let’s build a stacked bar chart
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
Go to datawrapper.de
45 min
About Datawrapper
Overview of maps
75 min
Overview of charts & tables
75 min
Resources
15 min
What is Datawrapper?
and let’s create a locator map and a choropleth map
and let’s create a line chart and a stacked bar chart
and time for questions
Agenda
What can you create with Datawrapper?
Charts
Maps
Tables
Choropleth Maps
Create maps in Datawrapper
Choropleth Maps
Create maps in Datawrapper
Symbol Maps
Create maps in Datawrapper
Choropleth and Symbol Maps with over 4000 administrative boundaries
Create maps in Datawrapper
Choropleth Maps
Create maps in Datawrapper
Choose your administrative boundaries
Create maps in Datawrapper
Upload or request the boundaries you need
Create maps in Datawrapper
Need a map Datawrapper doesn’t offer?
Upload your own GeoJSON:
or send a request to the Datawrapper team:
support@datawrapper.de
Let’s build a choropleth map
with IMF data
This exercise uses data that comes directly from the IMF data portal “World Economic Outlook Database”. There’s no need to clean the numbers up in a spreadsheet software before importing them to Datawrapper. That makes it fairly easy to experience the whole process from data to map (although you’ll need to make extra sure every attendee follows along in the IMF data portal, otherwise they might get stuck).
Difficulty: 2 / 5
Time: 10-20 min when demoing / 40-70 min when attendees follow along
Exercise 3
Dataset: Unemployment data by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in all countries for the current or last year. We prepared the exercise so that the resulting map shows unemployment in European countries, but the exercise is built in a way that the resulting map can show unemployment on any continent.
Focus: Choropleth map settings, how to use colors to best point out the difference between center European nations & Southern European nations.
Also touches on: How to navigate the IMF Data Portal, how maps are great for showing patterns, how hard it is to “read” values out of maps, how to show multiple values in tooltips, how to write a chart title, share & embed settings after publishing.
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
This is what your workshop attendees will build in this exercise:
Exercise 3
Let’s build a choropleth map with IMF data
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
Maps can only show one value
Let’s build a choropleth map
Maps are great for showing patterns…
…but make it hard to extract precise numbers.
Let’s build a choropleth map
Go to data.imf.org and search for the unemployment rate data
Go to app.datawrapper.de/select/map
Locator Maps
Create maps in Datawrapper
Locator Maps
Create maps in Datawrapper
Upload your own areas and lines as GeoJSONs
Create maps in Datawrapper
Shaded relief
Create maps in Datawrapper
Add markers
Create maps in Datawrapper
Let’s build a
locator map of our city
Choose this easy exercise if your attendees should have an good-looking map at the end without the need to tackle data first. Or make the exercise far more challenging and include a lesson on how to import GeoJSON markers/areas/lines.
Difficulty: 1 / 5
Time: 5-20 min when demoing (depending on how many locator map settings you will show) / 15-40 min when attendees follow along
Exercise 4
Dataset: None. The markers show the favorite places of your workshop attendees.
Focus: Creating & formatting markers and other locator map settings. Also touches on: Why and how to test for mobile readers, share & embed settings after publishing.
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
This is what your workshop attendees will build in this exercise:
Exercise 4
Let’s build a locator map of our city
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
Go to app.datawrapper.de/select/map
Datawrapper resources
Lists and explains where workshop attendees can get help or inspiration when working with Datawrapper in the future (Academy, blog, newsletter, changelog, support, River, Twitter). This will most likely be the last part of your workshop.
Presenter notes – please remove this slide from the final presentation
45 min
About Datawrapper
Overview of maps
75 min
Overview of charts & tables
75 min
Resources
15 min
What is Datawrapper?
and let’s create a locator map and a choropleth map
and let’s create a line chart and a stacked bar chart
and time for questions
Agenda
Datawrapper Resources
Academy
academy.datawrapper.de
Documentation
Support
support@datawrapper.de
Confused? Write us.
Webinars
datawrapper.de/webinars
Topical deep dives
Blog
datawrapper.de/blog
Announcements & inspiration
River
app.datawrapper.de/river
Visualizations by other users
Social media & newsletter
@datawrapper datawrapper.de/blog/newsletter
Keep up to date
Changelog
datawrapper.de/changelog
The latest changes
API docs
developer.datawrapper.de
Automate your process
Want to learn more about Datawrapper?
Academy
academy.datawrapper.de
Documentation
Support
support@datawrapper.de
Confused? Write us.
Webinars
datawrapper.de/webinars
Topical deep dives
Blog
datawrapper.de/blog
Announcements & inspiration
River
app.datawrapper.de/river
Visualizations by other users
Social media & newsletter
@datawrapper datawrapper.de/blog/newsletter
Keep up to date
Changelog
datawrapper.de/changelog
The latest changes
API docs
developer.datawrapper.de
Automate your process
Datawrapper Academy
Academy
Learn more about Datawrapper
Datawrapper Academy
Academy
Learn more about Datawrapper
Datawrapper Academy
Academy
Learn more about Datawrapper
Directly in the app
Academy
Learn more about Datawrapper
Support Team
Support
Learn more about Datawrapper
Write to support@datawrapper.de
Datawrapper webinars
Webinars
Learn more about Datawrapper
Looking for inspiration?
Academy
academy.datawrapper.de
Documentation
Support
support@datawrapper.de
Confused? Write us.
Webinars
datawrapper.de/webinars
Topical deep dives
Blog
datawrapper.de/blog
Announcements & inspiration
River
app.datawrapper.de/river
Visualizations by other users
Social media & newsletter
@datawrapper datawrapper.de/blog/newsletter
Keep up to date
Changelog
datawrapper.de/changelog
The latest changes
API docs
developer.datawrapper.de
Automate your process
Datawrapper Blog
Blog
Where to find inspiration
Weekly Charts
Blog
Where to find inspiration
How-to articles
Blog
Where to find inspiration
Data vis do’s and don’ts
Blog
Where to find inspiration
Data Vis Dispatch
Blog
Where to find inspiration
Datawrapper River
River
Where to find inspiration
Are you curious about the latest developments at Datawrapper?
Academy
academy.datawrapper.de
Documentation
Support
support@datawrapper.de
Confused? Write us.
Webinars
datawrapper.de/webinars
Topical deep dives
Blog
datawrapper.de/blog
Announcements & inspiration
River
app.datawrapper.de/river
Visualizations by other users
Social media & newsletter
@datawrapper datawrapper.de/blog/newsletter
Keep up to date
Changelog
datawrapper.de/changelog
The latest changes
API docs
developer.datawrapper.de
Automate your process
Feature announcements
Blog
Up to date with developments
Datawrapper newsletters
Newsletter
Up to date with developments
Bluesky
Social media
Up to date with developments
Mastodon
Social media
Up to date with developments
Social media
Up to date with developments
Datawrapper Changelog
Changelog
Up to date with developments
Do you want to automate your workflows?
Academy
academy.datawrapper.de
Documentation
Support
support@datawrapper.de
Confused? Write us.
Webinars
datawrapper.de/webinars
Topical deep dives
Blog
datawrapper.de/blog
Announcements & inspiration
River
app.datawrapper.de/river
Visualizations by other users
Social media & newsletter
@datawrapper datawrapper.de/blog/newsletter
Keep up to date
Changelog
datawrapper.de/changelog
The latest changes
API docs
developer.datawrapper.de
Automate your process
Datawrapper API docs
API docs
Automate your workflows
Datawrapper API docs
API docs
Automate your workflows
DatawRappr – a Datawrapper package for R
API docs
Automate your workflows
DatawRappr – a Datawrapper package for R
Blog
Automate your workflows
datawrapper – a Datawrapper package for Python
API docs
Automate your workflows
datawrapper – a Datawrapper package for Python
Blog
Automate your workflows
datawrapper – a Datawrapper package for Python
Blog
Automate your workflows
Datawrapper webinars
API docs
Automate your workflows
Datawrapper Resources
Academy
academy.datawrapper.de
Documentation
Support
support@datawrapper.de
Confused? Write us.
Webinars
datawrapper.de/webinars
Topical deep dives
Blog
datawrapper.de/blog
Announcements & inspiration
River
app.datawrapper.de/river
Visualizations by other users
Social media & newsletter
@datawrapper datawrapper.de/blog/newsletter
Keep up to date
Changelog
datawrapper.de/changelog
The latest changes
API docs
developer.datawrapper.de
Automate your process
Thank you!
Any questions?
support@datawrapper.de
yourname@yourorg.com