One of the most useful ways of using visualization is to show the change of data over time. There are a lot of great visualization techniques like the line graph, scatter plot, bar chart, and many more. While there are many ways to show it, choosing the right way is very hard. Below are a few of the visualization types that you can use to represent changes over time.
Line – The most common time series graph. It is best used when you have a lot or just a few of data points. Use this when you need to place multiple data series on one graph.
Scatter – Scatter plots are best used when you have a lot of data points. They are useful when the data is not nicely structured.
Bar – Bar charts are best used when dealing with time scales that are evenly spaced out and the data set is distinct.
Stacked Bar – Same as the bar chart, but for when there are multiple categories.
Stacked Area – Stacked Area charts are best used when there are a lot of data points and there is not enough room in the visualization for bar charts.
Reference:
http://flowingdata.com/2010/01/07/11-ways-to-visualize-changes-over-time-a-guide/