Logarithmic Scale

Published Jun 27, 2025 [ Miscellaneous ]

A log scale (short for logarithmic scale) is a way of displaying numerical data that uses the logarithm of values instead of the values themselves. This means:

On a linear scale, equal distances represent equal increments (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4…).
On a log scale, equal distances represent multiplicative increments (e.g., 1, 10, 100, 1000… if using log base 10).

Why use a log scale?

Handle wide ranges: Useful when data spans several orders of magnitude (e.g., 1 to 1,000,000).
Reveal exponential trends: Exponential growth appears as a straight line on a log scale.
Compress large values: Makes plots more readable when large values would otherwise dominate.

Example

Value	Log10(Value)
1	0
10	1
100	2
1000	3

A plot of these values on a log scale would space 1, 10, 100, and 1000 equally, even though their actual differences are large.

Tags

Logarithmic Scale

Why use a log scale?

Example