What type of information does a pie chart best illustrate?

A pie chart is particularly effective for illustrating percentages of a whole at a specific point in time because it visually represents parts of a whole. Each slice of the pie correlates to a category's proportion relative to the entire dataset, allowing viewers to quickly gauge how different categories compare in percentage terms. This format is ideal for showing how a single data set is divided into different components, making it easier for the audience to understand proportions and relative sizes at a glance.

In contrast, pie charts do not effectively convey trends over time, as they represent a static snapshot rather than a continuum. Similarly, while they can show categories of data, they do not provide the required context to represent changes over time. Lastly, pie charts are not suitable for comparative analysis among multiple datasets, as they can become cluttered and difficult to interpret when representing more than one whole. Thus, the strength of pie charts lies specifically in their ability to illustrate how individual categories contribute to a total at a given moment, making the third option the correct choice.