Chart Makers

How to make a chart in 5 steps

1. Write down the question. "Which activity takes most of my week?" and "How did sales change each month?" need different charts. The question decides the chart, not the other way round.
2. Choose the chart type. Use the table below: bars to compare categories, a line for change over time, a pie for parts of one whole, a scatter plot for the relationship between two numbers.
3. Enter or paste your data. Open the matching chart maker and type one label and one value per row, or paste two columns straight from a spreadsheet. For several series (for example, each week), use the stacked or grouped bar maker.
4. Label and tidy it. Give the chart a title that states the point, name the axes with units, sort bars from largest to smallest, and keep colours to a minimum.
5. Download and share. Export a PNG for slides, documents and messages, or an SVG when you need it to stay sharp at any size.

Which chart maker should you use?

Not sure yet? The how to choose a chart guide goes through the decision in more detail, and the chart types guide explains how each one is read.

Worked example: a chart summarizing all activities

Suppose you logged a typical week and want one chart that summarises every activity. The raw log is a long list of entries, so the first job is to aggregate: add up the hours for each activity.

Now pick the chart for the message:

• "Where does my time go?" A horizontal bar chart sorted from largest to smallest, like the one above, is the easiest to read and compare. Paste the two columns into the bar chart maker.
• "What share of the week is each activity?" Six categories that add up to a whole also suit a pie or donut chart; the pie chart maker works out the slice angles for you.
• "How did my week change over a month?" Log the same activities for each week and use a stacked bar chart, one bar per week, in the stacked bar chart maker. To follow one activity, such as exercise, use the line chart maker.
• Project activities with dates are a schedule rather than a summary; lay them out on a Gantt chart.

The same approach works for any summary chart, whether it covers sales by region, survey answers or club activities: group the raw records, total each group, then chart the totals.

What to look for in an online chart tool

Many online tools let you create your own charts. Whichever you use, a few things make the difference between a quick result and a frustrating one:

• Data entry that accepts pasting from a spreadsheet, so you do not retype numbers. If your data starts as a file, see how to make a chart from a CSV.
• Editable title, labels and colours, so the chart explains itself. Our guide to labelling chart axes covers what to write.
• Clean exports: PNG for everyday use and SVG for print or resizing, without a watermark.
• No account needed for a one-off chart, and ideally processing in the browser so your data is not uploaded.

Spreadsheet programs such as Excel and Google Sheets can also chart a selected range, which is handy when the data already lives there. A dedicated chart maker is usually quicker when you just have a short list of numbers and want a tidy image.

Tips for a clearer chart

• Start the value axis of a bar chart at zero, or the bar lengths will exaggerate differences.
• Sort categories by value unless they have a natural order, such as months.
• Use one colour for a single series and add colours only when they encode something; see how to choose chart colors.
• Group very small categories into "Other" so the chart stays readable.

Frequently asked questions

What online tools let you create your own charts?

Free browser-based chart makers, such as the bar, line, pie, scatter, radar and stacked bar chart makers on this page, let you type or paste your own data and download the result. Spreadsheet apps like Excel and Google Sheets can also build charts from a selected range.

How do I create a chart summarizing all activities?

List every activity, add up the time or count for each one, and decide what you want to show. Use a sorted bar chart to compare activities, a pie chart for each activity's share of the total, or a stacked bar chart to compare that mix across days or weeks.

Which chart is best for activities over time?

Use a line chart to follow one activity across days or weeks, and a stacked bar chart when you want each bar to show the total with every activity's contribution inside it. For scheduled tasks with start and end dates, use a Gantt chart.

Can I make a chart online for free without signing up?

Yes. The Chart.biz chart makers are free, need no account, and add no watermark. They run in your browser and export a PNG image or a scalable SVG file.

How do I make a chart from a spreadsheet or CSV file?

Copy the label column and the value column from your spreadsheet and paste them into a chart maker, keeping one label and one value per row. The CSV guide linked on this page walks through cleaning and formatting the data first.