Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016

Charts are a tool that users can use to graphically represent data. Using a chart in a presentation helps the audience better understand the meaning behind the numbers. This makes it easier to visualize comparisons or trends, etc.

Types of charts

PowerPoint has a number of chart types, allowing users to choose the type that best suits your data. To use the chart effectively, users will need to understand how to use different charts. PowerPoint 2016 has many types of charts, each with its own advantages.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 1

Identify parts of the chart

In addition to chart types, you will need to understand how to read the chart. The chart contains a number of different elements and these different parts can help interpret the data.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 2

Insert chart

PowerPoint uses spreadsheets as a placeholder to import data for charts, like Excel. The data entry process is quite simple.

How to insert a chart

1. Select the Insert tab , and then click the Chart command in the Illustrations group .

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 3

2. A dialog box will appear. Select a category from the left pane and review the charts that appear in the right pane.

3. Select the desired chart, then click OK.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 4

4. A chart and spreadsheet will appear. The data that appears in the spreadsheet is the source data that the user placeholder will replace with his or her information. Source data is used to create charts.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 5

5. Enter data into the spreadsheet.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 6

6. Only data surrounded by new blue lines appears in the chart, but this area will automatically expand when the user continues to enter.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 7

7. When finished, click X to close the spreadsheet.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 8

8. The chart will be completed.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 9

Users can edit chart data at any time, by selecting the chart and clicking the Edit Data command on the Design tab .

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 10

Users can also click the Insert Chart command in the placeholder to insert a new chart.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 11

Create a chart with existing Excel data

If there is already data in the existing Excel file that you want to use for the chart, you can transfer the data by copying and pasting it. Just open the spreadsheet in Excel, select and copy the desired data, then paste it into the source data area for the chart.

Users can also embed existing Excel charts into PowerPoint presentations. This can be useful when you need to update data in your Excel file and want the chart to automatically update whenever Excel data is changed.

Modify charts with chart tools

There are many other ways to customize and organize charts. For example, PowerPoint allows changing chart types, rearranging data of charts and even changing the layout and style of charts.

How to change chart type

If you find that the data doesn't fit a certain chart, it's easy to switch to the new chart type. In the example in this article, we will change from a column chart to a line chart.

1. Select the chart you want to change. The Design tab will appear on the right side of the ribbon.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 12

2. From the Design tab , click the Change Chart Type command .

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 13

3. A dialog box will appear. Select the desired chart type, then click OK.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 14

4. The new chart type will appear.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 15

How to transfer row and column data

Sometimes, users may want to change the way your chart data groups. For example, in the chart below, book sales data is grouped by category, one line per month. However, we can convert rows and columns to a group chart of data by month, one line per category. In both cases, the chart contains the same data, just different organization.

1. Select the chart you want to modify. The Design tab will appear.

2. From the Design tab , select the Edit Data command in the Data group .

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 16

3. Click on the chart again, then select the Switch Row / Column command in the Data group .

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 17

4. The rows and columns will be converted. In the example in this article, data is now grouped by month, one line per category.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 18

It can be seen that when data is entered into the first column of the spreadsheet, row and column conversion can produce unexpected results. One solution is to enter single quotes before each number, indicating that the worksheet is formatted as text instead of numeric values. The 2016 example will be entered as ' 2016.

How to change the layout of the chart

Predefined chart layout, allowing users to modify chart elements, including titles, captions and data labels to make the chart easier to read.

1. Select the chart you want to modify. The Design tab will appear.

2. From the Design tab , click the Quick Layout command .

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 19

3. Select the desired predefined layout from the menu that appears.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 20

4. The chart will update to reflect the new layout.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 21

To change the chart component (such as the chart title), click on that element and start typing new content.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 22

How to change the chart type

Chart types allow users to quickly modify the interface.

1. Select the chart you want to modify. The Design tab will appear.

2. From the Design tab , click the More drop-down arrow in Chart Styles.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 23

3. Select the desired style from the menu that appears.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 24

4. The chart will appear in the selected style.

Work with charts in PowerPoint 2016 Picture 25

Users can also use chart formatting shortcuts to quickly add elements to charts, change chart styles and filter chart data.

Good luck!

See more:

1. Demonstrate 3D diagram in PowerPoint
2. Mind mapping in PowerPoint
3. How to create an effect for an Excel chart in PowerPoint