Have you realized how popular data representations are across the internet? The utilization of infographics and data visualizations have mushroomed over the last few years. With the increased growth of social media sites, infographics and data visualizations can be a very effective way to increase the likelihood that your posts or messages will go viral. Thanks to the growth of  such services it has never been easier to quickly and easily create awesome data visualizations and infographics. Below, I will state the top free tools to create infographics and data visualizations quickly and easily.

PowerPoint

PowerPoint is very easy to use and you can utilize the various visualizations that Microsoft has built into the PowerPoint to create beautiful infographics.

Google Docs

Mush like PowerPoint above, you can use Google docs to create simple info graphics very easily to represent your data. Google-docs is currently not as robust as PowerPoint. However, you can quickly create data visualizations to  represent data in Google Docs.

Google Public Data

You can use Google’s data to quickly create graphical representations using Goggle’s curated data.

Visual.ly

Visually allows you to create stunning info-graphics for free in your web browser. There are a few templates there to get you started. They also have a section of  their website that will allow you to get connected with designers who can help you create professional info-graphics or you just do not have the time to create your own info graphics.

Easel.ly

Much similar to Visual.ly easily allows you to create and share infographics from the comfort of your browser.  Currently there are more than 10 default themes to start out with. When you create your infographic you can choose to either share it or make it private.

StatPlanet by Stat Silk

StatPlanet enables users to create data visualizations in charts, graphs and interactive maps.

 

Hohli

Hohli allows you to easily create charts and graphs online.

Visualize.me

Visualize.me allows users the ability to quickly and easily create an infographic of  ones resume. This can be an effective way to showcase your skills and portfolios.

Wordle

Wordle allows you to create visualizations using words. Word graphics can be an effective way to display information. Wordle’s terms of service is clear and a simple read. The infographic you create on wordle are yours. Therefore, I highly recommend that you use wordle.

Taxedo

Taxedo is very similar to Wordle. However, Taxedo has some very useful features that I am sure you will find very useful, such as the ability to enter any webpage url.  Taxedo will  then pull the words from that page to make an infographic.  I would caution you to make certain that you read Taxedo’s terms of service.

Infogr.am

Infogram allows users to easily create and share inforgraphics. To get started you will need to have either a  Twitter or a Facebook account. There are a number of templates  and objects to choose from. Infogram automatically archives your  your creations thus allowing you to return to them to make changes and update them.

ManyEyes

Many Eyes is a data visualization software. In their own words Many Eyes states-

“Many Eyes is an experiment brought to you by IBM Research and the IBM Cognos software group.”

Many eyes also offers very useful information as to the best type of visualization to use based on the type of data you are presenting. Also, you have the ability to utilize already uploaded data or you can upload your own data sets to create visualizations. Overall, Many Eyes is a comprehensive data visualization tool that you need to check out.
Conclusion

There are a wide variety of ways to bring your otherwise bland data to life. Unequivocally, the use of infographics has exploded over the last few years breathing a breath of fresh air into data representations.   I would suggest that you choose the tool that works best for the type of data that you are trying to represent. Gone as are the days when only designers could create stunning infographics.