Summary

Bar charts are great for comparing things, because it's easy to see how bar lengths differ. This chart is an example of a clustered bar chart showing product units sold this year versus last year. The data used for this chart looks like this on the worksheet:

Data for clustered bar chart

How to make this chart

  1. Select the data and insert a bar char on the ribbon:
    Click the insert column chart icon on the ribbon
  2. Insert the first 2D bar chart option:
    Choose the basic 2D bar chart option
  3. Right-click each data series and use fill tool to change color:
    Right click data series and use fill tool to change color
  4. After changing colors:
    Chart after data series color change
  5. Select vertical axis, and reverse category order:
    Show categories in reverse order
  6. Move legend to top:
    Select legend and move to top
  7. Final chart:
    Final clustered bar chart
Dave Bruns Profile Picture

AuthorMicrosoft Most Valuable Professional Award

Dave Bruns

Hi - I'm Dave Bruns, and I run Exceljet with my wife, Lisa. Our goal is to help you work faster in Excel. We create short videos, and clear examples of formulas, functions, pivot tables, conditional formatting, and charts.

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