About / Observable

Observable’s approach

We believe thinking with data is an essential skill for the future.

It shouldn’t be relegated to a specialized role, siloed or constrained by point-and-click tools. To make better decisions, everyone needs to participate. Everyone can think better if they are able to explore and visualize data without limits.

We’ve been inspired by the transformative power of open source: code sharing, open collaboration, and transparent design are now the norm for great software. Those same principles guide the core experience of building visualizations on our platform, creating a community where people can build on and learn from each other.

Observable reimagines how we can make sense of data for this modern, connected world, making it more approachable, accessible, and social — maybe even fun.

Observable’s community is made up of hundreds of thousands of developers, data scientists, data journalists, data hobbyists, students, teachers, and other humans working with data. Together, they’re creating and sharing their work with more than 4.7 million visitors.

A place where everyone can make sense of the world with data, together.

The growing complexity of the world’s data demands new ways of understanding. Humans sought out visualization techniques to make sense of the data.

The development of libraries like D3 created a community around powerful tools for building dynamic data visualizations — a renaissance in informational visualizations for the web.

We’re building on that foundation, reimagining how people work with data together.

Observable is the best place to discover and learn data visualization techniques from a vibrant community. And with reusability and collaboration built into the platform from the ground up, Observable makes it easy to remix and build on each other’s work.

Observable makes working with data more approachable, interactive, transparent and shareable — a place where everyone can go to make sense of the data in the world.