What is a Spreadsheet Chart?
A spreadsheet is a type of computer program that is designed to assist with mathematical calculations and other tasks involving large amounts of data. Spreadsheets are often used to organize and analyze data.
A spreadsheet chart is a graphical representation of data in a spreadsheet, typically in the form of a two-dimensional chart. Charts are typically used when you want to see the relationship between two or more sets of data, such as sales over time or expenses by category.
Why Use Charts in Excel
Charts are an effective way to present data in a graphical form. They help people understand the data better and provide them with a visual representation of what is being communicated.
Excel has many different types of charts that can be used for different purposes. For example, there are bar charts for displaying the data in a horizontal format and line charts for displaying the data in a vertical format. There are also pie charts, scatter plots and histograms that can be used to display the data graphically.
The Different Chart Types To Use For Your Data Visualization Needs
A bar graph is used to show the different values of data in a category. It can be used to compare the average height of people from different countries.
A line graph is a type of chart that shows how one quantity changes over time. It can be used to show the trends in prices for a particular product over time, or it could also be used to show how many people are using a certain app at different times throughout the day.
Pie graphs are often used to show the breakdown of data into percentages or parts per hundred. For example, if you wanted to display how much money each person in your team makes, you could use this type of chart and have each person's salary as part of one segment on your pie graph.
Scatter plots are often used when you want to explore the relationship between two quantitative variables.
Different Types of Charts in Excel
There are many types of charts in Excel, but they can be broadly classified into three categories: 2D, 3D and Interactive. 2D charts are the most common type of chart and they are used to display data points on a two dimensional plane. The 3D charts have three dimensions, which means that they have height and width as well as depth and can be used to visualize complex data sets. Interactive charts can be used for exploratory analysis or for visualization purposes that require interaction with the user to generate the desired result.
Line Charts
A line chart is a type of chart that shows changes in data over time.
Line charts are typically used in business and economics to show trends in data over periods of time, such as months or years.
Line graphs are also used for many other purposes, such as to display the change in temperature throughout the day or to show the change in stock prices during a single day.
The type of line graph depends on what you want your audience to take away from it. If you want them to see how one variable changed relative to another, use a simple line graph with just two lines. If you want them to see how one variable changed at different points in time, use a more complex line graph that includes multiple lines and labels for each point on the x-axis.
Bar Charts
A bar chart is a graphical representation of data that uses rectangular bars of varying lengths to show the relative sizes of different items.
The most common types are:
- Column charts
- Bar charts
- Line graphs
Column Charts
Column charts are a type of data visualization that display the data as columns. Columns can be stacked or grouped to show the relationship between two or more sets of data.
There are many different types of column charts, and they can be used to display a variety of different types of data. Column graphics can be created by hand, but there are also column chart software programs that can help automate the process. There are also online tools that allow you to create your own column graphs without downloading any software.
Pie Charts
Pie charts are a type of chart that graphically represent data by dividing the 360 degrees of a circle into slices, typically three.
The most common type of pie chart is the "doughnut" or "pie" chart, so called because it resembles a pie that has been cut and then placed on its side.
A second type of pie chart is the polar area diagram, which is an arc-shaped graph in which each sector's size represents its relative share.
Area Charts
Area charts are a type of chart that can be used when the data being plotted is measured in both length and width. The area between the two axes is shaded to represent the data.
Area charts are often used to show changes over time, or to compare different categories. They can also be used in situations where it's important to see how much of some quantity there is in relation to another quantity.
Area graphics software:
- Tableau Public
- Microsoft Excel
- Google Sheets
- Adobe Illustrator
- Plotly
- Plotly Offline
Top Excel Charting Tips
The following are the top spreadsheet charting tips that will help you to create charts with ease.
- Always use a title for your chart.
- Place labels for the vertical and horizontal axes of your chart.
- Ensure that the axis ticks on your chart are correct and appropriate.
- Make sure that you have used meaningful data labels on your chart.
- Use colors to highlight important information in your chart.
- Use different colors for different series of data in one graph.
- Every graph or table should be formatted in the same manner. For example, use the same font size, style, color and alignment of text within titles and labels.
- Keep all formatting consistent throughout one graph