Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

amCharts VS Highcharts

Compare amCharts VS Highcharts and see what are their differences

amCharts logo amCharts

Advanced javascript charting library that will suit any data visualization need

Highcharts logo Highcharts

A charting library written in pure JavaScript, offering an easy way of adding interactive charts to your web site or web application
  • amCharts Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-09
  • Highcharts Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-03-16

amCharts features and specs

  • Comprehensive Feature Set
    amCharts offers a wide range of chart types and features, including line charts, bar charts, area charts, and advanced ones like geographical maps and time-series charts.
  • Ease of Use
    The library provides a user-friendly API, making it easier for developers to create and customize charts without extensive coding.
  • Customizability
    amCharts allows a high degree of customization, letting developers tweak almost every aspect of the charts, including colors, labels, and interactivity options.
  • Responsive Design
    Charts created with amCharts are responsive, automatically adjusting to different screen sizes and resolutions.
  • Interactive Elements
    amCharts supports interactive elements like tooltips, drill-downs, and animations which enhance user engagement and data exploration.
  • Extensive Documentation
    The library comes with detailed documentation and a variety of tutorials and samples, making it easier for new users to get started quickly.
  • Community and Support
    There is an active community and official support available, providing assistance through forums and direct support channels.
  • Export Capability
    amCharts provides exporting options, allowing users to export charts as images, PDFs, or data files.

Possible disadvantages of amCharts

  • Cost
    While amCharts offers a free version, the more advanced features and commercial usage require a paid license, which may not be suitable for all budgets.
  • Learning Curve
    Despite an intuitive API, the vast array of customization options can present a steep learning curve for new users.
  • Performance
    For extremely large datasets, the performance might lag compared to some other specialized charting libraries, which could be critical in data-intensive applications.
  • File Size
    Due to its extensive feature set, the library's file size can be relatively large, which might impact the load time of webpages.
  • Dependency on External Libraries
    Certain functionalities in amCharts may depend on additional external libraries, which could complicate the setup process.
  • Browser Compatibility
    While generally good, there may be occasional compatibility issues with older or less common browsers.
  • Complexity for Simple Charts
    For developers needing only simple charts, amCharts might be overkill and thus add unnecessary complexity.

Highcharts features and specs

  • Customization
    Highcharts provides extensive options to customize chart appearance and functionality, allowing for a tailored and specific data visualization experience.
  • Cross-Browser Compatibility
    Highcharts ensures compatibility across a wide range of browsers, making charts accessible to users regardless of their browser preferences.
  • Wide Range of Chart Types
    Offers a broad spectrum of chart types, including line, bar, pie, scatter, and more, catering to various data visualization needs.
  • Interactive Features
    Includes numerous interactive features such as tooltips, zooming, and clickable points, enhancing user engagement with the data.
  • Strong Community and Support
    Has an active community and provides extensive documentation, forums, and professional support options to assist users in overcoming challenges.
  • Performance
    Optimized for high performance, allowing for the rendering of large datasets without significant lag or performance issues.
  • Exporting and Sharing
    Built-in options for exporting charts to various formats (PNG, JPEG, PDF, etc.) and sharing them easily.

Possible disadvantages of Highcharts

  • Cost
    Highcharts is not free for commercial use, which may be a drawback for small businesses or individual developers with limited budgets.
  • Steep Learning Curve
    Despite comprehensive documentation, the abundance of features and customization options can result in a steeper learning curve for new users.
  • Dependency on JavaScript
    As a JavaScript library, Highcharts requires a solid understanding of JavaScript, making it less accessible for developers not familiar with the language.
  • Limited Free Support
    While there is a free support forum, professional support options are paid, which can be a limitation for users needing urgent assistance without extra costs.
  • Mobile Responsiveness
    Although Highcharts provides some support for mobile responsiveness, achieving optimal performance and displays on all device types may require additional customization.

Analysis of amCharts

Overall verdict

  • Yes, amCharts is generally considered a good option for data visualization, particularly due to its ease of use, customization capabilities, and extensive support resources. Many users appreciate its intuitive API and the ability to create visually appealing and interactive charts and dashboards without much hassle.

Why this product is good

  • amCharts is a popular choice for creating interactive charts and maps. It offers a wide range of chart types, from simple ones like line and bar charts to more complex types such as spatial maps and gauges. The library is highly customizable and provides extensive documentation along with examples, making it accessible for both beginners and experienced developers. Additionally, amCharts supports real-time data updates and is compatible with various frameworks and platforms, enhancing its versatility.

Recommended for

    amCharts is recommended for web developers and data analysts who need to present data in a visually compelling way on web applications. It is particularly useful for businesses and organizations requiring interactive and dynamic charting capabilities, such as those in financial analysis, marketing analytics, and scientific research.

Analysis of Highcharts

Overall verdict

  • Highcharts is a strong choice for those seeking a robust and feature-rich charting library. Its popularity among developers and businesses stems from its reliability and comprehensive feature set.

Why this product is good

  • Highcharts is considered good because it offers a wide range of chart types and is highly customizable. It is known for its detailed documentation, ease of use, and cross-platform compatibility. Additionally, Highcharts provides extensive support and a variety of integrations with popular frameworks, making it a versatile choice for developers.

Recommended for

  • Developers looking for a user-friendly and customizable charting library.
  • Projects that require extensive interactive data visualizations.
  • Businesses that need a reliable and professionally supported charting solution.
  • Teams using web technologies and frameworks like Angular, React, or Vue for front-end development.

amCharts videos

Amcharts 4 Line Chart in ASP.NET MVC

Highcharts videos

Angular 2 & HighCharts Quick-Tip: Dynamic Data & Draggable Points (2016)

More videos:

  • Tutorial - How to define the custom colors for Highcharts?
  • Review - Data Visualization HighCharts

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to amCharts and Highcharts)
Data Visualization
19 19%
81% 81
Data Dashboard
16 16%
84% 84
Charting Libraries
20 20%
80% 80
Javascript UI Libraries
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using amCharts and Highcharts. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare amCharts and Highcharts

amCharts Reviews

Top 10 JavaScript Charting Libraries for Every Data Visualization Need
amCharts is one of the JavaScript charting libraries that are helpful when you need a simple, and at the same time, flexible data visualization solution.
Source: hackernoon.com

Highcharts Reviews

6 JavaScript Charting Libraries for Powerful Data Visualizations in 2023
However, you might need to pay for additional packages to get exactly what youโ€™re looking for. The Highcharts Core package includes all the essentials (like line, bar, area, and pie charts) but Maps, Gantt, and Stock chart packages are all extra. In terms of cost, this makes Highcharts somewhat less scalable, depending on the budget available for your project.
Source: embeddable.com
15 JavaScript Libraries for Creating Beautiful Charts
Highcharts is another very popular library for building graphs. It comes loaded with many different types of cool animations that are sufficient to attract many eyeballs to your website. Just like other libraries, Highcharts comes with many pre-built graphs like spline, area, areaspline, column, bar, pie, scatter, etc. The charts are responsive and mobile-ready. Besides,...
Best Data Visualization Tools
For companies that want to embed interactive visualizations in their online content, look no further than Datawrapper. Highcharts is another great option for embedding interactive content into your sites, though itโ€™s not as easy for non-specialists as Datawrapper.
Source: neilpatel.com
Top 10 JavaScript Charting Libraries for Every Data Visualization Need
Highcharts is one of the most comprehensive and popular JavaScript charting libraries based on HTML5, rendering in SVG/VML. It is lightweight, supports a wide range of diverse chart types, and ensures high performance.
Source: hackernoon.com
The Best Data Visualization Tools - Top 30 BI Software
Highcharts is a battle-tested SVG-based, multi-platform charting library that has been actively developed since 2009. Its JavaScript API integrates easily, and features robust documentation, advanced responsiveness and industry-leading accessibility support. You can add interactive, mobile-optimized charts to your web and mobile projects. Charts are rendered in SVG and a VML...
Source: improvado.io

What are some alternatives?

When comparing amCharts and Highcharts, you can also consider the following products

D3.js - D3.js is a JavaScript library for manipulating documents based on data. D3 helps you bring data to life using HTML, SVG, and CSS.

Chart.js - Easy, object oriented client side graphs for designers and developers.

Google Charts - Interactive charts for browsers and mobile devices.

Plotly - Low-Code Data Apps

AnyChart - Award-winning JavaScript charting library & Qlik Sense extensions from a global leader in data visualization! Loved by thousands of happy customers, including over 75% of Fortune 500 companies & over half of the top 1000 software vendors worldwide.

ZingChart - ZingChart is a fast, modern, powerful JavaScript charting library for building animated, interactive charts and graphs. Bring on the big data!