Hi everyone, I would like to report a potential bug regarding the percentage variation calculation (KPI) in the new AppSheet Chart View.
I noticed that when the current value is lower than the previous one (negative change), the system provides an incorrect percentage. It appears that the formula uses the current value as the denominator instead of the previous value.
Example of negative variation (INCORRECT):
On the other hand, when the variation is positive, the calculation is correct.
Example of positive variation (CORRECT):
This inconsistency makes the “Show % difference” KPI option unreliable for tracking budgets, savings, or any declining metrics. Has anyone else encountered this issue?
Best regards.
Hi @vitistuta
Have you checked your formula? As far as I know, Appsheet only reads data from the results of your formula. Unless you use a number, for example, 60 with a column type of % (percent), Appsheet will automatically multiply 100 to 60*100%, which is 6000%. Because if you want to produce 60% with a column type of %, the data you provide must be 0.6 (decimal) because if multiplied by 100 it becomes 60%. My suggestion is to check your formula again.
Thanks for the suggestion, but I think there is a misunderstanding. I am not using a custom formula in a Virtual Column or in Google Sheets.
I am using the native “Show % difference” option inside the New Chart View (KPI settings). In this mode, AppSheet calculates the percentage difference automatically between two data points.
The issue is that the system’s internal logic for this specific feature seems to change depending on the trend:
-
When the trend is positive, it correctly uses: (New - Old) / Old
-
When the trend is negative, it incorrectly uses: (New - Old) / New
As shown in my example, with a drop from 100 to 50, the chart shows -100% (calculated on 50) instead of -50% (calculated on 100). This is not a column formatting issue (Decimal vs Percent), but a calculation logic error within the new Chart UI itself.
Is anyone else using the New Chart View KPI features and seeing this?
(in this pic, the last value is 1825,47, the current value is 822,40. the % differcence should have been -54,95%)
Hi @vitistuta
Yes, you are right, I made a mistake in the divisor, it should be -50%
