Flourish is the reference tool for embeddable data storytelling. PlotSet covers the same interactive ground, then exports the result as a finished MP4 without asking anyone for permission.
Choose Flourish if scrollytelling stories for a newsroom are your main output and you are happy publishing with attribution on the free plan. Choose PlotSet if you need the same animated charts delivered as a self-serve MP4, or if design-tool plugins are part of your workflow.
Flourish is a template-driven data visualization platform, acquired by Canva in 2022 and widely used in newsrooms. You pick a template — bar chart race, projection map, scrollytelling story — upload a spreadsheet, bind columns to the template's slots, and publish an interactive embed. Its template gallery and its Story mode, which chains visualization states into a scrolling narrative, are the two things it is genuinely best known for.
PlotSet is a data visualization platform built around the same template-and-spreadsheet model, with video treated as a first-class output rather than an afterthought. It ships 300+ chart templates, live embeds on every plan including the free one, and MP4 video export. It also exposes an MCP server, so an AI agent can create and edit charts directly.
Both tools turn a spreadsheet into an animated, embeddable chart. The split is what happens when you need that animation as a video file. In Flourish, video export applies to stories rather than individual charts, caps out at 300 seconds, and is a premium feature their team enables on request — for a single animated chart the documented advice is to screen-record it. In PlotSet, MP4 rendering is a self-serve button on any plan, for any animated chart — watermarked and daily-limited on Free, unbranded on Plus.
Funktionen am 2026-08-16 anhand öffentlicher Dokumentation geprüft.
| Funktion | PlotSet | Flourish |
|---|---|---|
| Videoexport (MP4) | JaMP4; watermarked & limited on Free | TeilweiseStories only, 300s max, premium feature enabled on request |
| Animierte Diagramme & Races | JaFree on every plan | JaBar chart race, line race, scrollytelling |
| Fertige Vorlagenbibliothek | Ja300+ templates | JaLarge public template gallery |
| KI Text-zu-Diagramm | Nein | Nein |
| Diagramm aus einem Screenshot | Nein | Nein |
| Interaktive Live-Einbettungen | JaFree on every plan | JaAttribution required on free |
| CSV- / Excel-Import | Ja | Ja |
| Karten & Geodiagramme | Ja | JaProjection and marker maps |
| Live-Datenbank- / Warehouse-Verbindungen | TeilweiseFiles & Google Sheets; no warehouse connections | TeilweiseLive data via URL/API on paid plans |
| Team-Zusammenarbeit | Nein | JaTeam workspaces on paid plans |
| White-Label / ohne Branding | KostenpflichtigPlus and Enterprise | KostenpflichtigAttribution removal on paid plans |
| API-Zugriff | Ja | Kostenpflichtig |
| KI-Agentensteuerung (MCP) | Ja13-tool MCP server with OAuth | Nein |
| Figma-Plugin | Ja | Nein |
| Google Sheets-Add-on | Ja | Nein |
| Kostenloser Tarif | Ja5 static charts/day, 2 videos/day | JaPublic projects only |
Preise wie vom jeweiligen Anbieter veröffentlicht, geprüft am 2026-08-16.
Browse the Flourish template gallery and start from a bar chart race, map, or story template.
Paste or upload a spreadsheet, then bind each column to the template's data slots.
Adjust colours, labels, timing and annotations in the settings panel.
Publish to a public URL and copy the embed code — with Flourish attribution unless you are on a paid plan.
Upload a CSV or Excel file, or connect a Google Sheet — every column is typed on import.
Choose a static, interactive or animated template; PlotSet binds your columns automatically.
Adjust theme, fonts, colours and animation timing, with a live preview of the finished result.
Copy a live embed on any plan, or render an MP4 on any plan — no request queue, no story wrapper.
Flourish is a strong, mature product and the honest answer is that its story-based scrollytelling is more developed than PlotSet's. Where PlotSet pulls ahead is everything after the chart is finished: self-serve video rendering for any animated chart, embeds without attribution pressure on the free tier, and plugins that put charts into Figma, Google Sheets and the browser. If your deliverable is a scrolling article, Flourish is excellent. If your deliverable is a video, a social post, or a chart inside a design file, PlotSet removes steps Flourish leaves to you.
Render any animated chart to MP4 yourself on any plan, watermark-free on Plus. Flourish limits video export to stories, caps it at 300 seconds, and requires their team to switch it on.
The same PlotSet project publishes as a live embed, downloads as PNG or SVG, and renders to MP4 — no separate story wrapper around it.
Live interactive embeds work on every PlotSet plan. Flourish's free tier requires visible attribution on everything you publish.
Figma plugin, Google Sheets add-on and Chrome extension put PlotSet charts into your design files, spreadsheets and any web page. Flourish ships none of these.
PlotSet's MCP server gives Claude and other agents 13 tools to create, edit and export charts programmatically. Flourish has no agent surface.
Migrating from Flourish is mostly a copy-paste job, because both tools start from the same place: a spreadsheet with categories in rows and time periods in columns. Export your data from the Flourish data tab, upload it to PlotSet, and pick the matching template — bar chart races, line races and projection maps all have direct counterparts. Published Flourish embeds keep working while you move, so there is no need to cut over everything at once.
Not directly for a single visualization. Flourish's video export applies to stories rather than individual charts, has a 300-second maximum, and is a premium feature their team must enable on your account. For an individual animated chart, Flourish's own help centre suggests taking a screen recording. PlotSet renders any animated chart to MP4 from a button on any plan; free-plan renders are watermarked and daily-limited.
Kostenlos starten mit über 300 Vorlagen. Keine Kreditkarte nötig.
