# What are Harvey balls? > **Harvey balls:** Harvey balls are round pictograms that show, in five steps from empty to full, how far a criterion is met or a task is done. They let a table compare options at a glance without numbers. - Source: https://ai-presentations.com/glossary/harvey-balls/ - Updated: 21 October 2026 - Language: English - German version: https://ai-presentations.com/de/glossar/harvey-balls/ Also called: Harvey ball, Harvey ball rating, Harvey ball chart **Harvey balls** are round pictograms that show how far a criterion is met or a task is done. A ball has five states: empty (○), a quarter filled (◔), half filled (◑), three quarters filled (◕) and full (●). They are named after Harvey Poppel, a consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton, who is credited with introducing them in the 1970s. Their strength is the comparison table. Instead of numbers or words, every cell holds a ball, and the eye sees at once which option fills the most circles. *Three options on the same criteria. The row for ease of execution uses Harvey balls: a full ball means easy to carry out, a quarter ball means hard. The recommended option B is highlighted. Example with fictional figures.* 6. Option B recovers 89% of the lost EBITDA at moderate cost and low customer risk ## The five levels | Ball | Fill | Typical reading | | ---- | -------------- | ------------------------ | | ○ | Empty | Not met, not started | | ◔ | One quarter | Barely met, just started | | ◑ | Half | Partly met, half done | | ◕ | Three quarters | Largely met, nearly done | | ● | Full | Fully met, complete | The reading is a convention. Define it on the slide for the criterion you are rating. ## Where they show up Harvey balls fit anywhere several options meet several criteria: vendor comparisons, feature coverage against competitors, maturity assessments, progress per workstream in a status report, and the appraisal of options in a decision paper. ## How to use them well 1. **Define the scale once.** Say in a legend or footnote what “half” means for this criterion. A Harvey ball ranks, it does not measure 50%. 2. **Rate every option against the same rubric.** Write down the evidence behind each level, so two people would choose the same ball. 3. **Let full always mean better.** If a criterion is “risk” or “cost”, rename it “low risk” or “low cost”, so a full ball is always the good end. 4. **Keep the table small.** Five to eight criteria and three to five options read at a glance. More turns into a field of dots. 5. **State the conclusion in the title.** “Option B fully meets four of five criteria” gives the result, and the balls give the proof. Frame the chosen option's column to lead the eye there. 6. **Make them readable without color.** Fill, not color, carries the meaning, so the balls survive a grayscale printout. Add alt text if the file is shared digitally. ## Typical mistakes - **No legend.** The audience guesses what a half ball means, and every guess differs. - **Measured values shown as balls.** If you have real numbers, show the numbers or a bar chart. Harvey balls hide precision. - **Changing direction.** A full ball is good in one row and bad in the next. - **Unexplained ratings.** The balls look objective even when they are one person's opinion, so say who rated and on what basis. - **Too many levels.** Eight shades of fill are not Harvey balls, and nobody can tell them apart. ## Related terms Harvey balls show degree, while [RAG status](https://ai-presentations.com/glossary/rag-status/) shows condition through color. To place options on two criteria instead of many, use a [two-by-two matrix](https://ai-presentations.com/glossary/two-by-two-matrix/). The [guide to choosing the right chart](https://ai-presentations.com/guides/choosing-the-right-chart/) covers when a table with balls beats a chart, and an [action title](https://ai-presentations.com/glossary/action-title/) states the result. ## Frequently asked questions ### Who invented Harvey balls? They are named after Harvey Poppel, a consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton, who is credited with introducing them in the 1970s. ### What do the Harvey ball symbols mean? Each ball shows how far a criterion is met or a task is done: empty means not at all, a quarter filled means a little, half means partly, three quarters means largely and full means completely. ### How do I make Harvey balls in PowerPoint? Draw a circle with a white fill and a dark outline, lay a partial circle shape (a pie) of the same size over it and set its angle for the fill level. Copy the five versions and reuse them. The text characters ○ ◔ ◑ ◕ ● also exist, but not every font draws them alike. ### What is the difference between Harvey balls and RAG status? Harvey balls show degree, how much of a criterion is met, through the fill of a circle. RAG status shows condition, whether something is on track, through the colors red, amber and green. ## Related pages - [RAG status](https://ai-presentations.com/glossary/rag-status/): RAG status is a traffic-light rating: red, amber or green. Definition, what each color means and how to show it on a status slide so it can be trusted. - [Two-by-two matrix](https://ai-presentations.com/glossary/two-by-two-matrix/): A two-by-two matrix sorts items into four quadrants using two criteria. Definition, well-known examples such as the Eisenhower matrix, and how to build one. - [Choosing the right chart](https://ai-presentations.com/guides/choosing-the-right-chart/): Which chart fits which message: bars to compare, lines for trends, a waterfall for bridges. Includes when a pie works, when a table beats a chart, common traps. - [Action title](https://ai-presentations.com/glossary/action-title/): An action title is a slide headline written as a full sentence that states the slide's conclusion. Definition, before-and-after examples and rules. - [Visual hierarchy](https://ai-presentations.com/glossary/visual-hierarchy/): Visual hierarchy is the arrangement of elements so the eye reads them in order of importance. Definition, the five signals and how to apply them on slides. --- ai-presentations.com is published by Slaide (https://www.slaide.de), a sole proprietorship run by Nathalie Scholl in Heilbronn, Germany. [How this site is written, checked and corrected](https://ai-presentations.com/editorial-policy/).