/documd-visuals

Service Mix for a Colour-Blind Audience (Infographic)

Best for: a chart that has to be read correctly by everyone — published material, a public dashboard, anything where a reader may not separate red from green Avoid when: the figure is decoration rather than information — the CUD hues are chosen to be told apart, not to be pretty, and they look plain next to a vivid marketing palette Answers: how the current service mix splits, using colours that stay distinguishable under every kind of colour vision

infographic chart-pie-simple
theme
  colorPrimary #0072b2
  palette
    - #0072b2
    - #e69f00
    - #009e73
    - #d55e00
    - #56b4e9
    - #f0e442
    - #cc79a7
    - #6e6e6e
data
  title Service mix
  values
    - label API
      value 34
    - label Web
      value 22
    - label Batch
      value 18
    - label Search
      value 14
    - label Stream
      value 8
    - label Admin
      value 4

Data Shape

One row per service with a share or count. Six slices is already at the edge of what a pie can carry — beyond that, group the tail into "other".

Key Options

Pitfalls

• ❌ Picking the colours yourself and treating this as a normal palette → ✅ these eight are the Okabe–Ito set; swapping one out is what breaks the guarantee
• ❌ Relying on colour alone to carry the split → ✅ CUD's own first principle is redundant coding — label the slices, or vary shape, position or pattern as well
• ❌ Choosing the two adjacent warm hues for the two things that must not be confused → ✅ warm/cool alternate in the ramp for this reason; a pair two apart is safer than a pair side by side
• ❌ Using the lighter members (sky blue, yellow) for thin lines or small text → ✅ they are declared fill-only; the CUD guidance prescribes the darker blue and orange for thin marks

Alternatives