How to Prepare Tables and Figures for a Scientific Article
Tables and figures help present data, relationships, processes, and key findings in a scientific article more clearly. An effective visual element is not merely decorative; it should help readers understand information quickly, accurately, and independently.
This guide summarizes general principles that can be applied across different academic disciplines. Additional requirements may apply depending on the citation style or discipline-specific reporting standards used in the manuscript.
Should You Use a Table or a Figure?
The choice should depend on which format communicates the information most clearly.
- Table: Appropriate for precise numerical values, categories, comparisons, and detailed results.
- Figure: Appropriate for trends, relationships, distributions, models, processes, visual structures, and patterns.
Presenting the same information in both a table and a figure is usually unnecessary. Choose the format that communicates the data most effectively.
How Should Tables Be Prepared?
Each table should be as understandable as possible without requiring readers to repeatedly consult the main text. The table number, title, row and column headings, and explanatory notes should provide sufficient context.
1. Number Tables Consecutively
Tables should be numbered in the order in which they first appear in the manuscript: Table 1, Table 2, Table 3, and so forth.
Each table should be cited explicitly in the main text.
Example: The demographic characteristics of the participants are presented in Table 1.
2. Write an Informative Table Title
The title should clearly communicate what the table presents. Avoid vague titles such as “Results” or “Analyses.”
Weak: Table 2. Results
Better: Table 2. Regression Analysis of the Association Between Digital Leadership and Digital Transformation
3. Avoid Unnecessary Information
Include only information that contributes to understanding the research question or finding.
Very large tables may be divided or provided as supplementary material when appropriate.
4. Use Decimal Places Consistently
Similar numerical values should generally use a consistent number of decimal places. For example, if means are reported to two decimal places, comparable values within the same presentation should normally follow the same format.
Excessive decimal precision may reduce readability without providing meaningful additional information.
5. Define Abbreviations
Abbreviations that are not universally understood should be defined below the table. Readers should not need to search another section of the manuscript to understand them.
Example: Note. SD = standard deviation; CI = confidence interval.
6. Clearly Indicate Statistical Significance
If symbols such as asterisks are used to indicate statistical significance, their meaning should be defined in a table note.
Example: *p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001.
Where appropriate, reporting exact p values in addition to significance indicators may provide more useful information.
7. Limit Vertical Lines and Excessive Formatting
Tables should use a clean visual structure. Unnecessary vertical rules, heavy shading, multiple colors, and decorative formatting should generally be avoided.
Should Table Values Be Repeated in the Text?
It is not necessary to repeat every value from a table in the main text.
The text should emphasize the principal finding or pattern and direct readers to the table for detailed numerical information.
Example: The groups differed significantly on X, whereas no significant difference was observed for Y (Table 3).
What Is Considered a Figure?
Graphs, diagrams, flowcharts, models, maps, photographs, drawings, schematics, and similar visual materials may generally be treated as figures.
How Should Figures Be Prepared?
1. Number Figures Consecutively
Figures should be numbered according to the order in which they first appear: Figure 1, Figure 2, Figure 3, and so forth.
Each figure should be referred to explicitly in the manuscript text.
2. Use an Informative Figure Caption
The caption should clearly describe the main content or message of the figure.
In the general SAER Journal format, the figure number and caption may be placed below the figure.
3. Check Readability
Text, axis labels, data labels, symbols, and legends should remain easily readable after the figure has been placed within the journal page.
A figure that can only be understood when heavily enlarged may not be suitable for publication.
4. Label Axes and Units
Graphs should clearly identify what each axis represents and specify relevant measurement units.
Scales and axes should not be manipulated in ways that may create a misleading visual impression of the data.
5. Use Color for Communication, Not Decoration
Where color is necessary, it should help distinguish data or categories rather than serve primarily as decoration.
Where possible, visual distinctions should remain understandable in grayscale and for readers with different forms of color vision.
6. Ensure Adequate Image Quality
Avoid blurred, low-resolution, pixelated, or screenshot-based figures when original high-quality versions are available.
High-resolution original files may be requested separately during publication preparation after acceptance.
What Should Be Considered When Preparing Graphs?
The type of graph should be selected according to the structure of the data.
- Bar chart: Comparisons between categories or groups
- Line graph: Changes and trends over time
- Scatterplot: Relationship between two continuous variables
- Box plot: Distribution, median, and potential outliers
- Flow diagram: Processes, selection procedures, or research flow
Three-dimensional charts, decorative effects, or visual features that make data harder to interpret should be avoided unless they serve a clear scientific purpose.
Tables and Figures in Qualitative Research
Tables may be useful for summarizing themes and subthemes in qualitative studies. Figures may be used to present conceptual models, networks, relationships, or processes.
However, tables should not replace analytical explanation. Theme labels, their meaning, and their relationship to the research question should also be explained in the text.
Tables and Figures in Systematic Reviews
Systematic reviews commonly use tables to summarize characteristics of included studies, risk-of-bias assessments, and other evidence characteristics.
Where PRISMA is applicable, the study selection process may be presented using an appropriate PRISMA flow diagram.
Figures in Meta-Analyses
Forest plots, funnel plots, and other relevant visualizations may be used according to the analysis plan.
Effect measures, confidence intervals, and other statistical information used in the figure should be clearly identified.
Tables or Figures Taken from Other Sources
Tables and figures reproduced, adapted, or redrawn from another source must include an appropriate citation to the original work.
Authors are responsible for obtaining any permission required to reuse copyrighted material.
Modifying or redesigning a previously published visual does not automatically eliminate the need to cite the original source.
Where Should Table and Figure Titles Appear?
Under the general SAER Journal format:
- Table number and title: above the table
- Table notes and explanations: below the table
- Figure: positioned at the relevant location
- Figure number and caption: below the figure
Where a discipline follows a recognized alternative reporting convention, that system may be used provided it is applied consistently throughout the manuscript.
Where Should Tables and Figures Be Placed?
For initial submission, authors are encouraged to place tables and figures within the main manuscript as close as reasonably possible to their first citation.
This allows editors and reviewers to evaluate the text and visual material together without repeatedly switching between separate files.
How Should Sources Be Cited in Tables and Figures?
Original tables and figures created from the authors' own research data generally do not require a separate source citation.
Material reproduced or adapted from another source should be cited according to the referencing style used in the manuscript.
More detailed examples are provided in the SAER Journal citation and referencing guides.
Common Mistakes
- Presenting the same data in both a table and a graph without a clear reason
- Repeating every table value in the main text
- Failing to refer to a table or figure in the manuscript
- Using vague or uninformative titles
- Failing to define abbreviations
- Using unnecessary decimal precision
- Including low-resolution visual material
- Failing to label axes or units
- Using decorative charts that reduce scientific clarity
- Reusing material from another source without citation
- Overloading tables and figures with unnecessary information
Check Before Submission
- Are all tables and figures numbered consecutively?
- Is each table and figure cited in the main text?
- Can the title or caption explain the visual clearly?
- Are abbreviations and symbols defined?
- Has unnecessary information been removed?
- Are decimal places used consistently?
- Are figures clear and readable?
- Are axes and measurement units identified?
- Are reproduced or adapted materials properly cited?
- Have any required copyright permissions been obtained?
