> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/directus/directus/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Insights & Analytics

> Create custom dashboards with panels to visualize and analyze your data

Insights is Directus's built-in analytics module that lets you create custom dashboards with various visualization panels. Monitor metrics, track trends, and gain insights into your content without external tools.

## Overview

The Insights module provides:

* **Custom Dashboards** - Create multiple dashboards for different purposes
* **Visual Panels** - 12+ panel types for data visualization
* **Real-time Data** - Panels update automatically with your latest data
* **Flexible Layouts** - Drag-and-drop panels to arrange your dashboard
* **Filters & Variables** - Make dashboards interactive and dynamic

<Tip>
  Insights requires read permissions on both the `directus_dashboards` and `directus_panels` collections.
</Tip>

## Accessing Insights

Click the **Insights** icon in the sidebar navigation to access the Insights module.

You'll see:

* **Dashboard List** - All dashboards you have access to
* **Create Dashboard** button - Add new dashboards
* **Search** - Find dashboards by name

## Creating a Dashboard

To create your first dashboard:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Click Create Dashboard">
    Click the **+** button in the top right of the Insights overview.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Configure dashboard details">
    Enter:

    * **Name** - Dashboard title
    * **Icon** - Icon to display (optional)
    * **Color** - Color theme (optional)
    * **Note** - Description or notes (optional)
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save the dashboard">
    Click **Save** to create your dashboard.
  </Step>
</Steps>

You'll be taken to the empty dashboard where you can start adding panels.

## Adding Panels

Panels are the building blocks of your dashboards. Each panel displays a specific metric or visualization.

### Create a Panel

1. Open a dashboard
2. Click **Edit** to enter edit mode
3. Click the **+** button to add a panel
4. Select a panel type
5. Configure the panel options
6. Position and resize the panel
7. Click **Save** to save your changes

### Panel Types

Directus includes these built-in panel types:

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Metric" icon="calculator">
    Display a single numeric value with aggregate functions like count, sum, average, min, or max. Perfect for KPIs and key metrics.

    **Use cases:** Total users, revenue sum, average order value
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Label" icon="tag">
    Show static text or markdown content. Use for titles, instructions, or notes.

    **Use cases:** Dashboard headers, explanatory text
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="List" icon="list">
    Display a list of items from a collection with customizable fields.

    **Use cases:** Recent orders, top products, latest posts
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Line Chart" icon="chart-line">
    Visualize trends over time with a line graph.

    **Use cases:** Sales over time, user growth, page views by date
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Bar Chart" icon="chart-bar">
    Compare values across categories with vertical or horizontal bars.

    **Use cases:** Sales by category, items by status, regional comparisons
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Pie Chart" icon="chart-pie">
    Show proportions and percentages in a circular graph.

    **Use cases:** Market share, status distribution, category breakdown
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Metric List" icon="list-check">
    Display multiple metrics in a list format.

    **Use cases:** Multiple KPIs, comparison metrics
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Time Series" icon="chart-area">
    Advanced time-based visualizations with multiple data series.

    **Use cases:** Complex trend analysis, multi-metric comparisons
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Meter" icon="gauge">
    Display progress toward a goal with a gauge visualization.

    **Use cases:** Goal tracking, completion percentages, capacity meters
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Configuring Panels

When creating or editing a panel, you'll configure:

### Data Source

* **Collection** - Choose which collection to query
* **Field** - Select the field to aggregate or display
* **Function** - Choose aggregate function (count, sum, avg, min, max, first, last)
* **Filter** - Apply filters to limit which items are included
* **Sort Field** - For first/last functions, specify sorting

### Style & Format

Customize how your data appears:

* **Prefix/Suffix** - Add symbols like \$ or %
* **Number Style** - Decimal, currency, percent, or unit
* **Notation** - Standard, scientific, engineering, or compact
* **Decimals** - Set minimum and maximum decimal places
* **Conditional Formatting** - Change color based on value thresholds
* **Text Alignment** - Start, center, end, or justify
* **Font Style** - Weight, style, size, and family

### Panel Header

* **Show Header** - Toggle panel header visibility
* **Name** - Panel title
* **Icon** - Panel icon
* **Color** - Panel accent color
* **Note** - Description shown in header

## Editing Dashboards

To modify an existing dashboard:

1. Open the dashboard
2. Click **Edit** in the top right to enter edit mode
3. Make your changes:
   * **Add panels** - Click the + button
   * **Edit panels** - Click a panel to modify settings
   * **Move panels** - Drag panels to reposition
   * **Resize panels** - Drag panel corners to resize
   * **Delete panels** - Click the trash icon
   * **Duplicate panels** - Click the copy icon
4. Click **Save** to save your changes

<Warning>
  All panel changes are saved together. Click **Save** before leaving edit mode or changes will be lost.
</Warning>

## Dashboard Options

Click the menu icon (three dots) on a dashboard for these actions:

* **Edit Dashboard** - Change name, icon, color, or notes
* **Duplicate Dashboard** - Create a copy with all panels
* **Export Dashboard** - Download dashboard and panel configuration as JSON
* **Delete Dashboard** - Permanently remove the dashboard

## Viewing Mode

When not in edit mode, dashboards have special viewing features:

### Zoom to Fit

Click the **Fit to Screen** button to automatically scale the dashboard to fit your screen size. Perfect for displaying dashboards on monitors or TVs.

### Auto Refresh

Set up automatic dashboard refreshing:

1. Open the sidebar detail panel
2. Click **Refresh Interval**
3. Choose interval (10s, 30s, 1m, 5m, 15m, 30m, 1h)
4. Dashboard data will refresh automatically

<Tip>
  Auto refresh is perfect for dashboards displayed on office monitors or status boards.
</Tip>

### Manual Refresh

Click the refresh icon in the sidebar to manually reload all panel data.

## Variables and Filters

Make dashboards interactive with variables:

### Relational Variables

Create dropdown filters that update multiple panels:

1. Add a **Relational Variable** panel
2. Select a collection and field
3. Use the variable in other panel filters with `{{variable_name}}`
4. Users can select values to filter the entire dashboard

**Example:** Add a "Select Store" variable to filter all sales metrics by store location.

### Variable Panel

Create custom input fields for filtering:

1. Add a **Variable** panel
2. Configure the variable name and default value
3. Reference it in other panels with `{{variable_name}}`

## Sharing Dashboards

### Permissions

Dashboards respect user permissions:

* Users can only see dashboards they have read permission for
* Panel data only shows items the user can access
* Admin users have full access to all dashboards

### Export & Import

**Export a dashboard:**

1. Click the dashboard menu
2. Select **Export**
3. Save the JSON file

**Import a dashboard:**

1. Go to the Insights overview
2. Open the sidebar import panel
3. Upload the JSON file
4. Review and confirm the import

<Note>
  Exported dashboards include all panel configurations but not the actual data.
</Note>

## Best Practices

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Organize dashboards by audience">
    Create separate dashboards for different teams or purposes:

    * Executive dashboard with high-level KPIs
    * Content team dashboard with publishing metrics
    * Sales dashboard with revenue and conversion data
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Use clear naming conventions">
    Name panels and dashboards descriptively:

    * "Monthly Revenue" not "Metric 1"
    * "Top 10 Products" not "Product List"
    * "User Growth Dashboard" not "Dashboard 3"
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Keep dashboards focused">
    Don't overcrowd dashboards with too many panels:

    * Focus on 4-8 key metrics per dashboard
    * Group related metrics together
    * Create multiple dashboards instead of one large one
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Use conditional formatting">
    Make metrics easier to interpret with color:

    * Green for positive/good values
    * Red for negative/bad values
    * Yellow/orange for warning thresholds
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Dashboard Settings" icon="gear" href="/dashboard/settings">
    Learn about configuring permissions and access control.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Content Module" icon="box" href="/dashboard/content-module">
    Manage the data that powers your dashboards.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>