Chart elements

Each chart consists of more elements that determine its appearance. This is, first of all, the way data are shown within a group (Data Series) or a single series (Data Point). Depending on the type of data, different charts are being used: Column, Bar, Line, Surface, Pie … Accordingly, the elements of such charts are: title, legend, axes, background … By adding or removing elements we ‘re getting the more effective report.

Data series within a chart

Charts can be based on one or more data sets. More series are used when we want to show business results by quarter or over a few years. When making such charts, it is important to pay attention to the subtype as it determines their appearance. That is, we should choose whether to make a Stacked or Clustered chart. Also, during work with such charts, users may need to add, edit or delete series of data…

What kind of charts exist?

It’s not too difficult to create a chart, but you need to choose the type that best reflects our data. Excel has a multitude of charts, and every one of them suits best certain types of data. In the text that follows you will meet most commonly used charts, with suggestions on how to choose the right one that will meet your needs.

Charts, in a blink of an eye

The picture says more than 1000 words! Charts are an indispensable part of Excel reports with the goal of graphically displaying data and highlighting business trends. Recently, Excel knows that and, based on the given data, it proposes several types of reports that reflects them in the best way. Also, a user in the All Charts group can see all the offered report types and some of them use to create a new or modify an existing chart.

Sparklines

Sparklines are feature that is used to visualize small data series. These are charts contained in the cell, which can be columns, loss/gain columns, or line charts. This new option was released in Excel 2010 and it quickly found its way into the development of corporate reports, where key performance indicators or business trends should be emphasized. It allows us to easily see potential problems within beautiful and clear reports.