Numbers can be dull. Visualization makes your data more interesting. By using charts, you can add power to your data – captivating people’s attention, changing their perspective, and encouraging them to take action by presenting facts in a more visual way.
Luckily, creating a graph in Google Sheets is quite easy. (And fun!) In this article, you’ll learn how to insert different types of charts, ranging from the basic to the customized. You’ll also learn how to personalize these charts using the options available in Google Sheets.
The Basic Steps: How to Create a Graph in Google Sheets
To create a graph in Google Sheets, simply follow the steps below:
- Prepare your data in a spreadsheet.
- Insert a chart.
- Edit and customize your chart.
Pretty simple, right? Now, let’s dive into each step in detail.
Step 1. Prepare your data
Add your data to a Google spreadsheet. If your data is in another source, such as Airtable, Shopify, WordPress, Xero, QuickBooks, etc., import it into Google Sheets first. You can use Coupler.io, the tool that provides ready-to-use integrations with Google Sheets, to fetch data from the mentioned sources and many more.
Next, summarize your data if necessary. For example, if you have daily data, you might need to group it by month if you want to visualize it on a monthly basis. Your data doesn’t need to have an overall total. Here’s an example:
Step 2. Insert a chart
Start by selecting the data you want to display. Then, click on Insert > Chart in the menu. You can also click on the Insert Chart icon in the toolbar.
Just like that! Google will create a default chart for you based on your data. For example, the chart might be a nice line graph, as shown in the screenshot below. However, this might not be the chart you were expecting.
Maybe you dislike lines and find them as boring as numbers. But don’t worry, you can edit your chart using the Chart Editor that opens on the right side.
Step 3. Edit and customize your chart
If you accidentally closed the chart editor, simply double-click on the chart, and it will open again. The editor has two tabs: Setup and Customize. There are many options available to modify your chart – you can customize almost everything here.
You can change the chart type from a line graph to a bar or column chart in the Setup tab. You can also modify the data range, add and remove series, and toggle between rows and columns.
Google’s idea might be different from yours. You might want to customize the default appearance of a generated chart – switch from a white background to light gray, change a red bar to a green bar, and so on. For that, use the various options available in the Customize tab.
If you look at the chart area, you’ll notice three vertical dots in the top right corner. That’s the chart menu. Click on it, and you’ll see several options, as shown in the screenshot below:
Note that you can download your chart as an image (PNG or SVG) or a PDF file. You can also copy and paste it into other applications, such as Google Slides or Google Docs. You can use the keyboard shortcuts Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V to copy and paste it as well.
Chart vs Graph – What’s the Difference?
Every graph is a chart, but not every chart is a graph.
A graph is essentially a two-dimensional diagram. It illustrates the correlation between two or more sets of data using horizontal lines (X-axis) and vertical lines (Y-axis). Here’s an example of a scatter plot graph of monthly expenses:
- The X-axis (horizontal) shows the months (January to December).
- The Y-axis (vertical) shows the amount of expenses in USD.
At the same time, a pie chart is not a graph. Why? Pie charts use only one quantitative coordinate. A heat map is not a graph either, while bar graphs and line charts can be called bar charts and line charts respectively.
Nevertheless, there’s no distinct rule about using these terms. Most people use them as synonyms to refer to the same thing – a visual representation of data. Here’s how we suggest differentiating between charts and graphs:
Chart: Use this term when talking about a diagram that uses both X and Y axes to show a correlation.
Graph: Use this term when talking about a visual representation of data that uses only one coordinate.Don’t get confused, though – keep in mind that Google Sheets considers all charts as graphs.
Different Types of Charts in Google Sheets and How to Create Them
In general, to create a chart, follow the three basic steps described above, and you’ll be good to go. As of writing this article, there are 17 types of charts available in Google Sheets, and each type also has its own variation. We’ll cover most of them, but not all.
How to Create a Line Chart in Google Sheets
Line charts are best if you want to show trends over time and reveal the general direction of the data through trendlines. This can help you understand the sales trends, see if the number of support tickets is increasing linearly or exponentially, etc. A line chart is usually better than a bar or column chart when it comes to showing data over time because trendlines are more straightforward, allowing you to easily see the change over time.
To create a line chart, make sure to select “Line chart” in the “Chart type” menu after inserting a chart. The data range for this example is A2:G3.
How to Create a Multiple Lines Chart in Google Sheets
For a multiple lines chart, we need to select a broader range of data to compare the rest of the elements against each other. In our example, the data range will be A2:G6.
Note how the lines move from point to point over the months. And almost always, on the X-axis of a line chart, you’ll see some kind of time frame.
How to Create a Curved Chart in Google Sheets
If you want to customize the lines, there are some options worth considering. One of them is making the lines smooth to give them a different look.
Just double-click on the chart, then select the Customize tab. Under Chart style, check the Smooth option to get curved lines.
How to Create a Comparison Mode Chart in Google Sheets
Another option to consider is to make the chart display additional information when you hover over a data value. In the Chart style section, check the Comparison mode option to enable this. You’ll see helpful comparison information, as shown in the screenshot below:
These are just a few examples of the types of charts you can create in Google Sheets. Experiment with different chart types and customization options to find the best fit for your data.
Now that you’ve learned the basics of creating charts in Google Sheets, it’s time to unleash your creativity and turn your data into powerful visualizations. For more tips and tricks on Google Sheets and other tools, visit Crawlan.com.
Remember, the key to effective data visualization is to present your information in a way that is both easy to understand and visually appealing. So go ahead and start creating stunning charts that tell a story with your data!
