The following is the list of queries addressed in this article:


  1. How to customize the formatting options in the chart?
  2. How to save the chart as a template and re-use it in any other Excel file?
  3. How to increase or decrease the number of series?


How to customize the formatting options in the chart?



How to save the chart as a template and re-use it in any other Excel file?



1. Right-click on the chart and select "Save as Template"


This opens a dialog box, assign a name to your chart template, and click "Save". This saves the chart in a .crtx format


2. From our Instant Chart Maker file, Copy the data table (CTRL+C) and paste it (CTRL+V) into your chosen Excel file. 


3. Enter your information in the data table. Add or remove rows as needed. 

 


4. Select the columns required to build the chart, for this choose - the category (here, Department) and all the series (East, West, North & South)


5. Go to Insert and choose to see All Recommended Charts



This opens up a dialog box, go to All Charts and click on the Templates folder. Here, you'll find all the charts you have saved in step 1, choose the one that is relevant to the data and click "Ok".


6. That's it, your chart gets populated with the data from your Excel file and is fully independent of the Instant Chart Maker template file.


- Chart title and Axis titles:  Using a saved template to build your chart does not usually bring the Chart title and axis titles. Read this article to add these elements to your chart.


That's it, your very own simple stacked column chart is ready!


How do I increase or decrease the number of series?


To increase the number of series,

1.  Click on the last series (in the template, that is the South series)

2. Right-click and go to Insert, and then Table Colum to the Right


3. Add the necessary columns (or series) as needed.


By doing this, the chart gets updated with the newly added columns.


To decrease the number of series,

1. Click on any cell in the series that you want to delete, say the "South" series.

2. Right-click and go to Delete, then Table Columns:


3. With this the "South" series will be deleted and the chart gets updated accordingly.