How To Add Chart Elements In Excel

Lesson 22: Charts

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Introduction

Information technology can ofttimes be difficult to interpret Excel workbooks that contain a lot of data. Charts permit you to illustrate your workbook information graphically, which makes it easy to visualize comparisons and trends.

Optional: Download our practice workbook.

Understanding charts

Excel has several different types of charts, allowing yous to choose the one that all-time fits your data. In gild to use charts finer, you lot'll need to understand how dissimilar charts are used.

Click the arrows in the slideshow below to learn more than about the types of charts in Excel.

Excel has a diverseness of chart types, each with its own advantages. Click the arrows to come across some of the different types of charts available in Excel.
Column charts utilise vertical bars to represent information. They tin can work with many different types of information, simply they're well-nigh ofttimes used for comparing information.
Line charts are ideal for showing trends. The information points are connected with lines, making it piece of cake to run across whether values are increasing or decreasing over fourth dimension.
Pie charts make it like shooting fish in a barrel to compare proportions. Each value is shown equally a slice of the pie, so it'due south piece of cake to see which values make up the percentage of a whole.
Bar charts piece of work just similar cavalcade charts, just they use horizontal confined instead of vertical bars.
Expanse charts are similar to line charts, except the areas under the lines are filled in.
Surface charts let you to display data beyond a 3D landscape. They piece of work best with large information sets, allowing yous to encounter a variety of information at the same time.

In add-on to chart types, you'll need to empathise how to read a chart. Charts contain several dissimilar elements, or parts, that tin can aid y'all interpret the information.

Click the buttons in the interactive below to learn about the different parts of a chart.

labeled graphic

Legend

The legend identifies which data series each color on the chart represents.

In this example, the legend identifies the different salespeople in the chart.

Chart Title

The title should clearly describe what the chart is illustrating.

Vertical Axis

The vertical axis (also known as the y axis ) is the vertical role of the chart.

Here, the vertical centrality measures the value of the columns, so it is also called the value axis. In this example, the measured value is each salesperson'due south net sales.

Horizontal Axis

The horizontal centrality (also known as the x axis ) is the horizontal part of the nautical chart.

Hither, the horizontal axis identifies the categories in the chart. In this instance, each sales quarter is placed in its own group.

Data Series

The data series consists of the related data points in a chart.

In this example, the blue columns represent cyberspace sales by Robert Johnson. We know his data is blue because of the legend on the right.

Reading the data series, we can see that Robert was the pinnacle salesperson in quarters 1 and 3, while he was the second highest in quarters two and four.

To insert a chart:

Select the cells you want to chart, including the column titles and row labels. These cells will be the source data for the chart. In our instance, we'll select cells A1:F6.
Selecting cells A1:F6
From the Insert tab, click the desired Chart command. In our example, we'll select Column.
Clicking the Column chart command
Choose the desired nautical chart type from the drop-downward menu.
Choosing a nautical chart blazon
The selected chart will exist inserted in the worksheet.
The inserted chart

If you're non sure which type of chart to use, the Recommended Charts command will propose several different charts based on the source data.

Screenshot of Excel 2013 Clicking the Recommended Charts command

Chart layout and way

After inserting a chart, there are several things you may want to change well-nigh the fashion your data is displayed. Information technology's easy to edit a chart's layout and style from the Design tab.

Excel allows you to add together chart elements—such every bit chart titles, legends, and information labels—to make your chart easier to read. To add a chart element, click the Add Chart Chemical element command on the Design tab, then choose the desired chemical element from the drop-downward menu.

Adding a nautical chart title
To edit a chart element, like a chart championship, simply double-click the placeholder and begin typing.
Editing the nautical chart title placeholder text
If y'all don't want to add nautical chart elements individually, you can use one of Excel'southward predefined layouts. Only click the Quick Layout command, then choose the desired layout from the drop-downward menu.
Choosing a chart layout
Excel also includes several different nautical chart styles, which permit yous to chop-chop modify the look and feel of your nautical chart. To change the chart fashion, select the desired mode from the Nautical chart styles grouping.
Choosing a new chart mode

You tin can also use the chart formatting shortcut buttons to quickly add chart elements, change the chart way, and filter the nautical chart information.

Screenshot of Excel 2013 Chart formatting shortcuts

Other chart options

In that location are many other means to customize and organize your charts. For example, Excel allows you lot to rearrange a nautical chart's data, alter the nautical chart blazon, and even move the chart to a different location in the workbook.

To switch row and column data:

Sometimes y'all may want to change the way charts grouping your data. For case, in the chart below, the Book Sales data are grouped by year, with columns for each genre. However, nosotros could switch the rows and columns so the chart will group the data by genre, with columns for each year. In both cases, the chart contains the same data—it's just organized differently.

Screenshot of Excel 2013 The data grouped by year, with columns for each genre

Select the nautical chart you lot want to change.
From the Pattern tab, select the Switch Row/Cavalcade control.

Clicking the Switch Rows/Columns command
The rows and columns will be switched. In our example, the data is now grouped by genre, with columns for each year.
The switched row and column data

To change the chart type:

If y'all find that your data isn't well suited to a certain nautical chart, information technology'southward easy to switch to a new chart type. In our instance, we'll change our chart from a Cavalcade chart to a Line nautical chart.

From the Design tab, click the Change Nautical chart Blazon control.
Clicking the Modify Chart Type command
The Alter Chart Type dialog box volition appear. Select a new chart type and layout, and so click OK. In our example, nosotros'll choose a Line chart.
Choosing a new chart type
The selected nautical chart type will appear. In our example, the line chart makes information technology easier to see trends in the sales data over fourth dimension.

The new chart type

To motility a chart:

Whenever you insert a new chart, information technology will appear as an object on the aforementioned worksheet that contains its source data. Alternatively, you tin can move the chart to a new worksheet to help go along your data organized.

Select the chart yous want to move.
Click the Design tab, then select the Motion Nautical chart control.
Clicking the Motility Chart control
The Move Chart dialog box will appear. Select the desired location for the nautical chart. In our example, we'll choose to motility information technology to a New sheet, which volition create a new worksheet.
Click OK.
Moving the nautical chart to a new worksheet
The chart will announced in the selected location. In our case, the nautical chart now appears on a new worksheet.
The chart on its ain worksheet

Keeping charts up to date

Past default, when you add more than data to your spreadsheet, the nautical chart may non include the new data. To set up this, you can adapt the information range. Simply click the nautical chart, and it will highlight the data range in your spreadsheet. You tin can then click and drag the handle in the lower-right corner to change the data range.

Screenshot of adjusting a data range

If yous ofttimes add together more information to your spreadsheet, it may get tedious to update the data range. Luckily, there is an easier way. Simply format your source data as a table, then create a chart based on that tabular array. When you add more information below the table, it will automatically exist included in both the tabular array and the chart, keeping everything consistent and up to date.

Scout the video below to learn how to employ tables to keep charts upwardly to date.

Challenge!

Open an existing Excel workbook. If you want, you can utilize our practice workbook.
Utilise worksheet data to create a chart. If you are using the example, use the cell range A1:F6 as the source information for the nautical chart.
Change the chart layout. If y'all are using the example, select Layout 8.
Apply a chart style.
Motility the chart. If you are using the example, move the chart to a new worksheet named Volume Sales Data: 2008-2012.

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