Lesson 4: Creating Charts: Create A Chart
Lesson 4: Creating Charts: Create A Chart
In Microsoft Excel, you can represent numbers in a chart. On the Insert tab, you can choose from a variety of chart types, including column, line, pie, bar, area, and scatter. The basic procedure for creating a chart is the same no matter what type of chart you choose. As you change your data, your chart will automatically update. You select a chart type by choosing an option from the Insert tab's Chart group. After you choose a chart type, such as column, line, or bar, you choose a chart sub-type. For example, after you choose Column Chart, you can choose to have your chart represented as a two-dimensional chart, a three-dimensional chart, a cylinder chart, a cone chart, or a pyramid chart. There are further sub-types within each of these categories. As you roll your mouse pointer over each option, Excel supplies a brief description of each chart sub-type.
Create a Chart
To create the column chart shown above, start by creating the worksheet below exactly as shown.
After you have created the worksheet, you are ready to create your chart.
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1. 2. 3. 4. Select cells A3 to D6. You must select all the cells containing the data you want in your chart. You should also include the data labels. Choose the Insert tab. Click the Column button in the Charts group. A list of column chart sub-types types appears. Click the Clustered Column chart sub-type. Excel creates a Clustered Column chart and the Chart Tools context tabs appear.
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Click your chart. The Chart Tools become available. Choose the Design tab. Click the Quick Layout button in the Chart Layout group. A list of chart layouts appears. Click Layout 5. Excel applies the layout to your chart.
Add Labels
When you apply a layout, Excel may create areas where you can insert labels. You use labels to give your chart a title or to label your axes. When you applied layout 5, Excel created label areas for a title and for the vertical axis.
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Select Chart Title. Click on Chart Title and then place your cursor before the C in Chart and hold down the Shift key while you use the right arrow key to highlight the words Chart Title. Type Toy Sales. Excel adds your title. Select Axis Title. Click on Axis Title. Place your cursor before the A in Axis. Hold down the Shift key while you use the right arrow key to highlight the words Axis Title. Type Sales. Excel labels the axis. Click anywhere on the chart to end your entry.
Switch Data
If you want to change what displays in your chart, you can switch from row data to column data and vice versa.
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Click your chart. The Chart Tools become available. Choose the Design tab. Click the Switch Row/Column button in the Data group. Excel changes the data in your chart.
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Click your chart. The Chart Tools become available. Choose the Design tab. Click the More button in the Chart Styles group. The chart styles appear.
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EXERCISE 6
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Use the handles to adjust the size of your chart. Click an unused portion of the chart and drag to position the chart beside the data.
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Click your chart. The Chart Tools become available. Choose the Design tab. Click the Move Chart button in the Location group. The Move Chart dialog box appears.
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Click the New Sheet radio button. Type Toy Sales to name the chart sheet. Excel creates a chart sheet named Toy Sales and places your chart on it.
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Click your chart. The Chart Tools become available. Choose the Design tab. Click Change Chart Type in the Type group. The Chart Type dialog box appears. Click Bar. Click Clustered Horizontal Cylinder. Click OK. Excel changes your chart type.
You have reached the end of Lesson 4. You can save and close yo