Best Notion Charts to Build for Different Database Types

NotionStats can build many kinds of charts — bar, line, area, pie, doughnut, radar, stat cards, and calendars — but not every chart fits every database. The right starting point depends on what you're tracking. This guide pairs the most common Notion database types with the charts worth building first, including the properties they need.

Table of Contents #

• Finance databases
• Habit databases
• Fitness databases
• Subscription databases
• Trading journals
• Other databases

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Finance databases #

If you track income, expenses, or net worth in Notion, these charts give you the most signal:

• Income vs expense bar chart — X-axis: month (from your date property); Y-axis: amount, split by income/expense category. Quickly shows whether you saved or overspent each month.
• Category spending pie/doughnut — X-axis: spending category (Select). Y-axis: amount. Tells you where the money actually went.
• Net worth line chart — X-axis: month. Y-axis: cumulative net worth (use the Cumulative toggle). Long-term progress at a glance.
• Monthly savings rate card — A stat card showing savings ÷ income for the current period.

See the Finance template for a pre-built database that wires up to these charts.

Habit databases #

For habit trackers and routine logs:

• Completion by habit bar chart — X-axis: habit name. Y-axis: count of completed entries. Shows which habits you actually stick with.
• Daily activity calendar — Calendar view colored by completion count per day. Honest mirror of your consistency.
• Consistency rate line chart — X-axis: week. Y-axis: percentage of habits completed. Trend over time.
• Streak milestone card — Visual milestone for "days in a row" or "completed targets this month."

See the Habit template for a ready-made habit database.

Fitness databases #

For workout logs and body metrics:

• Training volume line chart — X-axis: week. Y-axis: sum of sets × reps × weight. Shows whether you're progressing.
• Top exercises bar chart — X-axis: exercise name. Y-axis: total volume. Reveals where your training time goes.
• Workout frequency calendar — Calendar showing days trained vs rest days.
• Body metric line chart — X-axis: date. Y-axis: bodyweight, body fat, or measurements. Long-term trend without obsessing day to day.

See the Fitness template for a working database.

Subscription databases #

For recurring spend tracking:

• Monthly recurring cost card — Stat card summing all active monthly subscriptions.
• Renewals calendar — Calendar grouped by renewal date. Spot back-to-back charges before they hit.
• Category breakdown pie chart — X-axis: subscription category. Y-axis: monthly cost. Shows where the money is going.
• Upcoming renewals bar chart — Bar chart for the next 30 days.

See the Subscriptions template to start from a working schema.

Trading journals #

For traders:

• Cumulative P/L line chart — X-axis: entry date. Y-axis: cumulative profit/loss. The single most important chart for any journal.
• Win rate card — Stat card showing wins ÷ total trades.
• Drawdown chart — Line chart showing peak-to-trough drawdown over time.
• Trading calendar — Calendar colored by daily P/L. See your best and worst days at a glance.
• Performance radar — Radar showing setup-by-setup win rate or average return.

See the Trading Journal template for a complete database.

Other databases #

If your database doesn't match the categories above (e.g. a reading log, content calendar, CRM, mood tracker, or job application tracker), start with these three charts before going custom:

1. Time-series bar or line chart — pick one date property and one number/checkbox property. Group by month.
2. Category breakdown pie or doughnut — pick one Select or Status property. Count rows or sum a number.
3. Activity calendar — pick a date property to surface when the database actually gets used.

These three together cover what changed over time, what categories dominate, and when activity happens — enough to make most databases legible.

Read How to Create Analytics From Any Notion Database for a step-by-step walkthrough of doing this without a template.

Quick reference #

Database type	Best chart starter pack
Finance	Income vs expense, category pie, net worth, savings card
Habits	Completion by habit, daily calendar, consistency line
Fitness	Training volume, top exercises, workout calendar
Subscriptions	Monthly cost card, renewals calendar, category pie
Trading	Cumulative P/L, win-rate card, drawdown, calendar
Anything else	Time-series, category breakdown, activity calendar

Want to make sure your database actually supports these charts? Read How to Structure Notion Database Properties for Better Analytics.