Compare
Same database, both ways.
Left, what Notion’s chart block can draw; right, what ChartOmodo draws. Same rows on both sides.
ChartOmodo builds charts and dashboards from Notion databases and CSV files and embeds them back into Notion pages. It draws 18 chart types, can use rollup, formula and relation properties as axes, and the Free plan includes 5 charts. From the Pro plan, it also connects to PostgreSQL, MySQL (Beta), Google Analytics 4, Google Search Console, Stripe (Beta) and Google Sheets by link, with more connectors on the way.
Change it once. Both sides follow.
Pick a type, a grouping and a value, then watch where the block stops.
One set of controls drives both charts. The left side stops where the chart block stops.
Notion’s chart block and ChartOmodo, side by side
Both sides are drawn by ChartOmodo from the same sample rows. The left one shows the shapes Notion’s chart block offers; it is not Notion’s own rendering, which looks different.
| Month | Region | Owner | Stage | Deals | Amount Σ rollup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | EMEA | Ada | Proposal | 1 | $4,165 |
| Jan | EMEA | Ben | Qualified | 3 | $3,459 |
| Jan | EMEA | Chloé | Lead | 3 | $6,073 |
| Jan | EMEA | Dev | Proposal | 4 | $2,507 |
| Jan | Americas | Ada | Negotiation | 3 | $1,659 |
What each one can draw.
Row by row, Notion’s own charts against ours.
| Capability | Notion chart block | ChartOmodo |
|---|---|---|
| Charts on the free plan | 1 chart | 5 charts |
| Chart types | 5: vertical bar, horizontal bar, line, donut, number | 18, 5 of them on Free; adds heatmaps, funnels, gauges and calendars |
| Rollup property as an axis | No. “Your X and Y axes won't be able to show rollups, buttons, unique IDs, files and media, or formulas resulting in a list of outputs.” Notion help: Charts | Charted directly |
| Formula property as an axis | Not formulas resulting in a list of outputs. About the rest: “Certain formulas, like formulas based on relations and rollups and other complex formulas, may cause charts to take a little bit longer to load.” Notion help: Charts | Charted when the formula returns text, a number, a checkbox or a date |
| Dashboards | Business and Enterprise plans | From the Starter plan |
| Export | PNG / SVG | PNG / SVG; PNG for charts drawn by the Chart.js engine |
| Where the chart lives | In Notion, or on a published Notion page Notion help: Public pages and web publishing | In your Notion pages, as an embed block |
Not checked on Notion’s side
| Capability | ChartOmodo |
|---|---|
| Split by column | One series per value of another column, relations included, from Starter |
| Relation columns | Each linked page becomes a category, named by its title |
| Percent of total | Each value as a share of the total, for counts and sums |
| Filters + aggregation | Count / sum / avg / min / max / count unique |
| Date and range filters | In the last or next N days, weeks or months, in the current period, or between two values |
| Number formats | Number, compact, percent or currency (Rupiah included), with a dot or comma as the decimal mark |
| Axis titles & range | Name each axis and set where the value axis starts and ends |
| Readable labels | On bar, line and area charts, labels that don't fit are tilted, thinned or hidden instead of stacked |
| Rendering engines | 7, picked per chart; ours on every plan, extra engines from the Starter plan |
| Auto light/dark embeds | Yes, from the Starter plan |
| Private links you can rotate | Yes, from the Starter plan |
| Custom CSS | Yes, from the Business plan |
| Data sources | Notion databases, CSV files, PostgreSQL, MySQL (Beta), Google Analytics 4, Google Search Console, Stripe (Beta) and Google Sheets by link; connectors from the Pro plan |
| Setup | Connect Notion once, then paste one embed link per chart |
| Refresh | Not live: on a plan timer, sooner when Notion reports an edit |
Every limit in this table, with Notion’s wording and a way around it: Notion chart limits and what to do about each.
The second table lists items we have not checked on Notion’s pages. Notion facts checked on 29 September 2026 against Notion’s chart help page, its dashboard help page, its pricing page and its publishing help page. If one has changed since, tell us through Support and we will fix it.
When each one fits.
Use Notion’s own charts when
- You are on a paid Notion plan and vertical bar, horizontal bar, line, donut and number charts cover what you need.
- You would rather not give any outside service access to a database, a fair reason.
- Our refresh does not suit the chart. A ChartOmodo chart is not live: it re-reads its database on a timer set by your plan, sooner when Notion reports an edit, or when someone presses Refresh on the embed.
Use ChartOmodo when
- You are on Notion’s Free plan and 1 chart is not enough: you get 5 charts here, with no card and no expiry.
- You need a chart Notion does not draw: a heatmap, a funnel, a gauge, a calendar, a sankey, a sunburst, a waterfall. Two of them step by step: Notion funnel chart from a CRM database, Notion habit tracker chart: weekly and calendar.
- You want to pick a rollup property as a chart axis: Chart a Notion rollup: why it fails and the fix.
- You want a dashboard without moving your workspace to Notion Business: Notion dashboards without the Business plan.
- Some of your data lives in a CSV, not in Notion.
ChartOmodo only ever reads the databases you pick, and you can revoke it from Notion at any time. How your data is handled. Also compared, the same way: another chart tool for Notion.
18 shapes, one picker.
Every type reads the same grouped rows. 4 have a counterpart in the block.
How to choose a chart tool for Notion.
9 questions to ask any chart tool before you connect a database. The answers are ChartOmodo’s, read from its current plans.
Is there a free plan you can keep?
A trial ends. A free plan lets you test the tool on a real database before you pay.
5 charts on Free, with no card and no expiry. See Pricing for Notion charts: free and paid plans.
Does it draw the chart you need?
Bars, lines and pies are common. Check for the shape your data needs before you connect anything.
18 chart types, 5 of them on Free; heatmap, funnel and gauge from the Starter plan; sankey, treemap, calendar heatmap and waterfall from the Pro plan. See Notion charts from any database or CSV.
Can it chart rollup, formula and relation properties?
Totals, scores and links between databases are usually kept in these properties, so they are often the numbers you want to see.
Rollup and formula properties chart like any other property; a formula works as an axis when it returns text, a number, a checkbox or a date. Each page linked through a relation becomes a category, named by its title. See Chart a Notion rollup: why it fails and the fix.
Can several charts share one embed?
A weekly review often needs more than one chart on the same Notion page.
Yes. A dashboard puts several charts on one grid behind one embed link, from the Starter plan. See Notion dashboards: many charts, one embed.
Can it split and filter the data itself?
Without grouping, splitting and filters in the tool, you end up adding helper properties to Notion.
Split by column: one series per value of another column, relations included, from Starter. Percent of total, count unique, and date filters (in the last or next N days, weeks or months, in the current period, or between two values) on every plan. See Features: charts and dashboards for Notion.
Do labels and numbers read without tuning?
Long category names and large numbers are where a chart most often becomes hard to read.
On bar, line and area charts, labels that don't fit are tilted, thinned or hidden instead of stacked. Number formats: number, compact, percent or currency (Rupiah included), with a dot or comma as the decimal mark.
Can it chart data that is not in Notion?
Some numbers sit in a CSV export or in your own database, not in Notion.
Yes. CSV files on every plan, up to 5 MB and 50,000 rows per file; PostgreSQL, MySQL (Beta), Google Analytics 4, Google Search Console, Stripe (Beta) and Google Sheets by link from the Pro plan.
Can a script or a workflow send it rows?
Pushing rows from n8n, Make, Zapier or a script keeps a chart current without copying data by hand.
Yes. The Push API writes rows from the Pro plan and reads charts back from the Starter plan, with a community node for self-hosted n8n, an OpenAPI file and a skill file for coding assistants. An MCP server connects Claude Code, Cursor and VS Code with one URL and a token. See API reference.
How fresh is the chart?
Ask how often a chart reads its source again, so a number on the page is never older than you expect.
Reads Notion again once its cached rows expire, after 30 to 300 seconds depending on your plan, sooner when Notion reports an edit, and at once when someone presses Refresh on the embed.
Questions
Can a Notion chart use a rollup as its X or Y axis?
No. Notion's help page says: "Your X and Y axes won't be able to show rollups, buttons, unique IDs, files and media, or formulas resulting in a list of outputs." ChartOmodo reads the rollup as a value, so you can pick it as an axis.
Does a formula based on a rollup work in a Notion chart?
Notion's written rule leaves room for it, as long as the formula returns a single value. Notion excludes formulas that result in a list of outputs, and warns about the rest: "Certain formulas, like formulas based on relations and rollups and other complex formulas, may cause charts to take a little bit longer to load." We have not tested it in a live workspace.
How many charts does Notion's Free plan include?
1 chart. Notion's help page says: "If you're on a Free plan, you can create one chart, and if you're on a paid plan, you can create unlimited charts." ChartOmodo's Free plan includes 5 charts.
Which Notion plans include dashboards?
Notion's help page says: "Dashboard views are available on Business and Enterprise plans." In ChartOmodo, dashboards start on the Starter plan.
Is a ChartOmodo chart live?
No. A chart re-reads its database on a timer set by your plan, sooner when Notion reports an edit.
What should I check before I pick a chart tool for Notion?
Check a free plan you can keep, the chart types it draws, rollup, formula and relation properties as axes, dashboards behind one embed, splits and filters inside the tool, readable labels and number formats, data beyond Notion, an API for scripts and workflows and how often it reads the data again. This page answers each of those for ChartOmodo from its current plans; ask any other tool the same 9 questions.