Under the question box is a row labelled **VISUALS**, with seven options. It controls what shape Aria's answer takes — and two of the seven do something more interesting than formatting.

Most of the time **Auto** is right. It is worth knowing the other six for the times it is not.

[Watch the walkthrough](https://kb.trackiq.com/kb-assets/kbvideo-aria-visuals-explainer-097d1902.mp4)

*Prefer to watch? Sixty-six seconds on the seven options and when to override Auto.*

## **The row**

![The visuals row, under the question box](/kb-assets/shot-ariav-composer-4bfc3d.png)

| Option | You get |
|---|---|
| **Auto** | Aria picks — the default |
| **None** | prose only, no visual |
| **Charts** | the answer as a chart |
| **Tables** | the answer as a table |
| **Mixed** | chart *and* table together |
| **Dashboard** | several panels in one answer |
| **Studio** | a saved, reusable dashboard |

The setting applies to the question you are about to ask, so change it *before* pressing Enter.

## **When to override Auto**

**None** — when you want a number or a sentence, not a picture. Good for quick checks and for anything you are going to paste into a message.

**Tables** — when you intend to copy the figures, scan a list, or compare rows precisely. A chart is worse than a table for *“which twelve campaigns and what did each spend?”*

**Charts** — when the shape matters more than the values. Trends, comparisons over time, anything where you are looking for a direction rather than a number.

**Mixed** — when you want both, which is more often than people expect. The chart shows you the pattern; the table lets you check it.

**Dashboard** — when one question genuinely has several parts. *“How did last month go?”* is not one chart.

## **Studio is different**

The first six change how an answer is drawn. **Studio saves it.**

Ask with Studio selected and you get a dashboard that persists — titled, described, and listed under **Aria → Studios**, where you can pin it. It is the difference between an answer you read once and a view you return to.

Use it the moment you notice you have asked the same question twice. See [**Studios: Building a Dashboard by Asking for It**](https://kb.trackiq.com/hc/knowledge-base/articles/aria-studios).

## **Every answer can be a PDF**

![Download PDF sits under the answer](/kb-assets/shot-ariav-full-2593c6.png)

Under any answer is a **Download PDF** button. It captures the answer as rendered — chart, table and the written interpretation together.

This is the fastest route from *“I need to explain this to someone”* to something you can send, and it works regardless of which visual you chose. Worth knowing before you start screenshotting.

## **The interpretation is the point**

Whatever visual you pick, Aria writes the sentence underneath it:

> *Your ROAS has been declining over the past 8 weeks, dropping from a peak of 1.86 in early July to 1.43 in the most recent week. This represents a 23% decrease…*

Anyone can read a chart. **The value is the reading**, and that arrives with every visual option except None — which is a reason to leave None for the cases where you genuinely only want the number.

## **Two things that catch people**

**Charts do not always suit the question.** Ask for a ranked list of thirty campaigns as a chart and you get thirty bars nobody can read. Tables win on lists; charts win on trends.

**The visual does not change the data.** Switching from Charts to Tables re-renders the same answer — it does not re-query or reveal anything hidden. If a figure looks wrong, changing the visual will not fix it. See [**What Aria Can and Cannot Answer**](https://kb.trackiq.com/hc/knowledge-base/articles/what-aria-can-and-cannot-answer).

## **A sensible default habit**

Leave it on **Auto**. Override when you already know the shape you want:

- Pasting into Slack or an email → **None**
- Checking specific figures → **Tables**
- Looking for a trend → **Charts**
- Presenting to someone → **Mixed**, then **Download PDF**
- Asked it twice already → **Studio**

## **Related**

- [**Asking Aria a Good Question**](https://kb.trackiq.com/hc/knowledge-base/articles/asking-aria-a-good-question) — phrasing that gets the visual you wanted.
- [**Managing Chats: Recent, Search and the All/Chats/Studio Filter**](https://kb.trackiq.com/hc/knowledge-base/articles/managing-aria-chats) — keeping the good answers findable.