How to Make a Bar Graph in Excel

Bar graphs are a fantastic way to visually represent data, making it easier to understand and analyze. Excel is one of the most popular spreadsheet software out there, offers a user-friendly interface to create impressive bar graphs with just a few clicks.

In this article, I’ll be showing you how to make a bar graph in excel in just few steps;

Table of Contents

How to Make Bar Graph in Excel

Before you begin to make your graph, you’ll need to have your data ready. You’ll need to setup the data in the spreadsheet before making the graph. Here’s a more details explanation on how to go about it.

Setting up the Data

First, prepare your data. It could be anything from sales figures to survey results. Once you have your data ready, organize it in a table format. Make sure to include clear labels for the x-axis (horizontal) and y-axis (vertical). This will help viewers understand the data better.

Organize the Data in a Table Format

To make our lives easier, let’s organize the data in a table format. Excel loves tables, and it makes handling and analyzing data a breeze. Create a table with columns representing different categories or variables, and rows representing individual data points. For our example, we could have one column for product names and another for their corresponding sales figures.

Include labels for the x-axis and y-axis:

Labels are like signposts that guide readers through our graph. They provide crucial information about what the data represents. In our case, we’ll need labels for the x-axis (horizontal) and y-axis (vertical). The x-axis label should describe the categories or variables we’re comparing (e.g., product names), while the y-axis label should explain what the numbers represent (e.g., sales figures in dollars).

Creating the Bar Graph in Excel

Open a new workbook and enter your data into the spreadsheet. Once that’s done,

Select the data you want to include in your graph. Simply click and drag your mouse to highlight the cells containing the data you want to include in the bar graph. The selected cells will be the building blocks of your chart.

Head over to the “Insert” tab in the Excel ribbon, located at the top of the screen. It’s like the command center for all things charts and graphs. Here, you’ll find various chart options, including different types of bar graphs.

Choose the appropriate bar graph type (e.g., clustered, stacked). Each type has its own unique visual representation, so pick the one that best suits your data.

Once you’ve made your selection, click on the corresponding icon, and voila! Excel will work its magic and generate a bar graph based on the data you selected.

Customize the graph by adding titles, labels, and legends.

Excel provides several customization options to make your bar graph stand out. You can adjust the appearance of the bars by changing their color or width. You can change its color or pattern to match your style or the theme of your data.

How to Make a Bar Graph in Excel with 3 variables

Here’s a step-by-step guide:

Open Microsoft Excel and create a new workbook.
Enter your data into the spreadsheet. Let’s assume you have three variables: Category, Value 1, and Value 2. Enter the categories in one column, Value 1 data in the next column, and Value 2 data in the third column.
Select the data range that includes all three variables.
Go to the “Insert” tab in the Excel ribbon.
Click on the “Clustered Column” chart type (the first option under the “Column” section).
Excel will generate a bar graph with the three variables. The categories will be displayed on the x-axis, and the values will be represented by the height of the bars on the y-axis.
Customize the graph by adding a title, labels for the axes, and legends if necessary. You can also change the appearance of the bars, such as color or width, to make it visually appealing.
If you want to add data labels to the bars, right-click on the bars, select “Add Data Labels,” and choose the desired location for the labels.
Save your Excel workbook to preserve your bar graph.

That’s it! You’ve successfully created a bar graph in Excel with three variables.

How to make Bar chart in Excel with percentages

Open Microsoft Excel and create a new workbook.
Enter your data into the spreadsheet. Let’s assume you have two columns: Category and Percentage. Enter the categories in one column and their corresponding percentages in the next column.
Select the data range that includes both the Category and Percentage columns.
Go to the “Insert” tab in the Excel ribbon.
Click on the “Clustered Column” chart type (the first option under the “Column” section).
Excel will generate a bar chart with the categories on the x-axis and the percentages on the y-axis.
Customize the chart by adding a title, labels for the axes, and any necessary legends.
To display the percentages directly on the bars, right-click on the bars, select “Add Data Labels,” and choose the desired location for the labels (e.g., above or inside the bars).
Save your Excel workbook to preserve your bar chart with percentages.

So, you’ve successfully created a bar chart in Excel with percentages. By adding the data labels to the bars, you make it easier for viewers to understand the precise percentage values.

How to Create a Bar Chart in Excel with Multiple Bars

Open Microsoft Excel and create a new workbook.
Enter your data into the spreadsheet. Let’s assume you have multiple variables and their corresponding values. Each variable will have its own column, and the values will be listed under each column.
Select the data range that includes all the variables and their values.
Go to the “Insert” tab in the Excel ribbon.
Click on the “Clustered Column” chart type (the first option under the “Column” section).
Excel will generate a bar chart with multiple bars, where each variable will have its own set of bars.
Customize the chart by adding a title, labels for the axes, and any necessary legends.
To differentiate the bars for each variable, you can apply different colors or patterns to the bars. Right-click on the bars, choose “Format Data Series,” and explore the options available to customize the appearance.
Save your Excel workbook to preserve your bar chart with multiple bars.

In this case, Excel automatically groups the bars based on the variables you entered in the spreadsheet. With that, you’ve successfully created a bar chart in excel with multiple bars.

Final Thoughts

In this article, we’ve explored how to make Bar graph in excel as well as how to make Bar graph in excel with 3 variables. We also covered how to make Bar chart in excel with percentages and how to create a bar chart in excel with multiple bars.

To create either of these type of graph, you’ll need to have your data ready. You’ll also need to indicate the x and y axis while inputting the data on the spreadsheet.

I hope with these steps you would be able to create any form of bar chart on your own. If you have any question, drop it in the comments box below.