Pie Chart vs Donut Chart

A donut chart is a pie chart with the center removed. That is the entire technical difference. Same data, same angles, same math. So the real question is not which is more accurate, it is which serves your layout and style better.

The hole changes three practical things. It frees center space for a total or headline number. It shifts what readers perceive from wedge areas to arc lengths, which some find slightly easier to compare. And it lightens the look, which is why dashboards and modern brand styles lean donut while textbooks and newspapers lean pie.

Side by side

Feature	Pie chart	Donut chart
Underlying data	Parts of a whole	Identical, parts of a whole
What readers judge	Wedge angle and area	Arc length
Center space	None	Free for a total or KPI
Visual weight	Solid, traditional	Lighter, modern
Small sizes	Good	Good, thin rings suffer first
Small slices	Hard to see	Slightly harder, less area per slice

Pick a pie chart when…

Classic or formal contexts: textbooks, papers, traditional reports
Very small slices matter, since the full wedge gives them more visible area
Young audiences and teaching, where the solid circle maps to fractions
You want maximum ink on the data with no styling decisions

Pick a donut chart when…

You want a total, percentage, or label in the center
The design context is modern: dashboards, apps, landing pages
Several charts sit side by side, where rings feel less heavy
Brand style favors light, open graphics

The verdict

This one is a style call, and it is hard to get wrong. Pick the donut when you want center space or a lighter look, the pie when you want tradition and maximum slice visibility. Both are one click apart in this editor, so try each with your data and keep the one that reads better.

See it with real data

Example: Streaming Hours by Genre (Pie)

The same data as a donut chart

Try it yourself

The example above is loaded into the editor — swap in your own data and see which chart tells your story better. Free, no signup, no watermark.

32.0%

26.0%

19.0%

14.0%

9.0%

Total: 100

Paste rows from Excel, Google Sheets, or plain text — one slice per line, like Coffee 60

Group small slices into “Other”

below %

Prefer a bigger canvas?Open this chart in the full-page editor.

Frequently asked questions

Is a donut chart more accurate than a pie chart?

No meaningful difference has been established. Some studies suggest people read arc length about as well as angle. Choose on layout and style, not accuracy.

What hole size should a donut chart use?

Between 50 and 65 percent of the radius is the comfortable range. Bigger holes look elegant but squeeze the arcs; smaller holes read as a pie with a dot missing. This tool lets you slide between 0 and 90 percent and judge live.

Can I put text in the middle of a donut chart?

The center hole is exactly for that. Put the total in the chart title here, or add center text in your slide or design tool after export. The hole size slider controls how much room you have.

Do pie and donut charts have the same limitations?

Yes. Both struggle past 6 or 7 categories, both hide small differences between slices, and neither handles negative values. The hole changes style, not the rules.