Sparklines in Excel

Sparklines in Excel are a handy way to quickly illustrate data in graphical form, without using the space needed for a full chart. They’re easy to add, and add helpful context fast. Let’s learn how to add sparklines in Microsoft Excel.

How to Add Sparklines in Excel

Sparklines, in essence, are line and column graphs that exist within a single cell in your Excel worksheets. They have the same form and function as a line or bar chart, but they occupy far less space than their full-sized counterparts.

For example, imagine that you have a series of cells in column format listing revenue figures for several prior years. At a glance, you want to be able to observe the trends, if any, in your dataset. Of course, you could add a full-sized line chart to your Excel sheet. But those take up a lot of room, and you’re looking for a less conspicuous option.

Sparklines are the perfect choice for you. To add them, begin by clicking and dragging to select your dataset. In this case, the cells are in the range B2:B6.

Once you have the data selected, go to the Insert tab on Excel’s ribbon. On the right side, you’ll see the Sparklines dropdown menu. Click on it, and you’ll see three options: Line, Column, and Win/Loss. The best choice here is Line. Go ahead and click on it.

In the Create Sparklines box, Excel will already have your chosen range selected. In the Select Where box, choose the cell where you want your sparklines to be placed. Let’s use cell B8 here.

When you’re finished, click OK. Excel will add the sparkline in your chosen cell.

As you can see, sparklines are easy ways to visualize data in spreadsheets, all in a compact, easy-to-read way.