How to view code distributions

Who this article is for

This article is for ATLAS.ti Windows, Mac, and Web users who want to explore coding frequencies, identify patterns, and review coded quotations across their projects.

What are code distributions?

Code distributions show how frequently codes appear in your data and where they occur across documents.

They help you:

• identify dominant themes
• compare coding frequencies
• review quotations linked to codes
• explore patterns across your project

Code distributions are especially useful when working with larger projects or broad thematic analyses.

View code distributions in ATLAS.ti Windows and Mac

In ATLAS.ti desktop, code distributions are available directly inside the Code Manager.

To open the Code Manager:

• double-click Codes in the Project Explorer on the left side

You will immediately see:

• your code list
• code groups
• code frequencies and distributions

Selecting one or more codes automatically updates the visualization below the code list, showing where those codes appear across your project.

You can hover over the visualization to inspect the distribution in more detail.

Change visualization type

In Windows:

• click the View button (eye icon)

In Mac:

• use the View Mode options at the top of the manager

Available visualizations include:

• Details
• Bar chart
• Word cloud
• Tree map

These visualizations help you explore your coding patterns from different perspectives.

Export distributions

In both Windows and Mac, you can click on "Export" to export:

• Excel spreadsheets
• chart images
• visualization graphics

This is useful for reports, presentations and publications.

View code distributions in ATLAS.ti Web

ATLAS.ti Web uses a dedicated Code Distribution view.

To create one:

1. Open Views from the left toolbar
2. Click + New View
3. Select Code Distribution

The view contains:

• a code frequency chart
• a quotation list

The chart displays codes sorted by groundedness, meaning the number of times each code appears in the project.

Clicking on a code filters the quotation list to show only quotations connected to that code.

You can also:

• select multiple codes
• deselect codes dynamically
• search within quotations
• apply filters
• rename add comments to the view (from the "..." button in the top-right corner)

Refine and filter results in Web

The search bar filters quotations by keywords or phrases.

For example, entering the word "recycling" will limit the results to quotations containing that word, while also recalculating the displayed code frequencies.

You can also create filter rules based on:

• codes and code groups
• documents and document groups

Adding multiple filter rules helps narrow results to more relevant data segments.

Change chart layouts in Web

Click the Chart button in the top-right corner to:

• change visualization type
• switch between vertical and horizontal layouts

You can also sort quotations by clicking the column headers.

Export results in Web

Click the download icon to export the results as an Excel spreadsheet.

Exports will include quotations, associated codes, comments and source documents.

Common issues

• I do not see any chart
  • Make sure at least one code is selected.
• My results seem too broad
  • to narrow the displayed quotations, use:
    • search terms
    • filters
    • code selections
• The chart looks crowded
  • Try:
    • selecting fewer codes
    • switching visualization type
    • filtering by document groups or code groups

When to contact support

Contact support if:

• visualizations fail to load
• exports are incomplete
• filters do not update correctly
• code frequencies appear inaccurate