How to Make a Simple Sparkline in Excel

This article will take a look at sparklines in Microsoft Exel, as well as how to create and customize them. 

What is an Excel Sparkline?

Microsoft Excel is an application that was created to help users organize numbers and data by applying various formulas and functions. This spreadsheet software provides those working with large datasets with various tools for performing calculations, organizing data, and visualizing trends and insights. One such Excel feature is a sparkline.

A sparkline is a small chart located in a spreadsheet cell that provides users with a compact visualization of data in the cells. They can indicate trends that occur in a set of values, like economic cycles or seasonal increases. Typically, sparklines are located near the data they pertain to, which helps Excel viewers make connections between the data and its visual representation.

There are several kinds of Excel sparklines from which to choose:

• Line sparklines are made up of lines. The high values on a line sparkline depict variations in height.

• Column sparklines are either bar charts or column charts, with each bar or column indicating a distinct value.

• Win/loss sparklines typically show positive vs. negative values, such as profits vs. loss. They are a helpful tool for indicating the ups and downs associated with floated costs. This type of sparkline is similar to a column sparkline but doesn’t indicate a value’s magnitude. For this reason, win/loss sparklines are more useful in binary situations, such as true/false or yes/no visualizations.

Why Use a Sparkline?

When working in Excel, it’s sometimes necessary to create a large chart to depict data. However, chats can complicate analysis and be time-consuming to create. Unlike Excel graphs, which are objects, sparklines are ordinary data located in cells. Creating sparklines is a common dashboard technique for visualizing just one portion of data drawn from a much larger dataset. Their condensed size makes them a powerful tool for concisely illustrating patterns in bigger datasets, and placing this visual depiction directly in one or more worksheet cells where it is easily visible and accessible. In addition, fluctuations and negative values can be clearly shown when sparklines are used to represent data. 

How to Create a Simple Sparkline in Excel

Inserting a sparkline into an Excel worksheet is a simple process made up of just a few steps:

• Choose a blank cell located at the end of a row.
• Click on “Insert.”
• Select which sparkline type you’d like to create.
• In the dialogue box that appears, type in the data range value by dragging through the range you wish to transform into a chart.
• Click on OK.
• The sparkline will appear in the designated cell or cells. 

From there, you can add markers, dots at various data points along the line, or colors to indicate the highest and lowest values. The color of the sparkline itself can also be changed, as can the kind of chart. In addition, in situations when more rows of data need to be incorporated, simply drag the handle to add a sparkline to each row. 

How to Customize a Sparkline

If you would like to customize the sparkline you created:

• Choose the sparkline.
• From the Design tab, which is located in the Show group, check High Poing and Low Point.
• Then, from the Design tab located in the Style group, select the visual style you wish to incorporate.

How to Color-Code a Sparkline

There are various color options available for sparklines. The following steps will help you add more contrast or emphasis to your chart:

• Choose the sparkline to which you’d like to add color.
• Go to the right-hand side of the Sparkline toolbar.
• Options will appear for changing the color of the sparkline and markers, as well as the weight of the sparkline.

Additional Tips for Creating Sparklines

Just like Excel charts, you can make additional changes to sparklines to better suit the needs of the data:

• If your sparkline would be more effective as a different kind of chart, simply select the “Type” group to switch to one of the other two types. 
• If you are satisfied with the sparkline you created, you can use paste-fill to create them down cell columns or across rows. 
• In situations where you have a series of ranges to plot, select the paste/fill box from the corner of the first sparkline cell to create a series of sparklines with one mouse drag.
• When you edit one or more values in a range of data for a sparkline, the sparkline will immediately update to reflect these increased or decreased values. 
• If you realize that you don’t need the visual representation of data in your spreadsheet, select the cell or cells that contain the sparkline, then select the “clear” button from the sparkline tab and it will be deleted.

Although standard Excel charts are useful for presentations, it can be cumbersome to try to make them fit into a spreadsheet alongside large datasets. Doing so can clutter a spreadsheet and distract from the data findings. This is one of the main benefits of working with sparklines. They occupy just one cell but contain a significant amount of information in this compact space. 

Sparklines are available in Microsoft Excel for Mac and Windows and provide an easy way to depict information in a manner that will connect with audience members and make a lasting impression.

Get Started Learning Excel with Hands-On Classes

A great way to learn more about Microsoft Excel is to enroll in one of Noble Desktop’s Excel courses in NYC and live online. Courses are available for those who are new to Excel, as well as learners who regularly work with this spreadsheet application and are looking to brush up on their skills. In addition, there are also in-person and live online Excel courses available through Noble Desktop or one of its affiliate schools. A variety of course options are offered, ranging in length from three hours to two days and costing between $229 and $1,099. 

Noble Desktop’s Excel Bootcamp provides a great option for those who want to master core Excel concepts, such as creating PivotTables or macros. Students who enroll in this rigorous, 21-hour course can elect to study in person in Manhattan or learn in the live online environment. This small class comes with the option of a free retake and covers a variety of Excel concepts applicable to the business world, such as PivotTables, macros, formulas, and functions.

Additionally, those who want to find Excel classes close to home can use Noble’s Classes Near Me too to browse more than 140 in-person Microsoft Excel classes.