How to Create Pie and Doughnut Charts in Excel

Creating charts in Excel can enhance your data presentation and make it easier to understand at a glance. Among the most popular chart types are pie and doughnut charts, which visually represent data portions as slices or rings. In this guide, I'll show you how to create both pie and doughnut charts in Excel, covering everything from setting up your data to customizing the look and feel of your charts.

Watch this video

Section 1: What Are Pie and Doughnut Charts?

Pie Chart: A pie chart is a circular chart divided into slices to illustrate numerical proportions. Each slice represents a percentage of the whole, making pie charts perfect for showing data distributions.

Doughnut Chart: A doughnut chart is similar to a pie chart but has a blank center. It’s great for displaying multiple series and comparing different sets of data within one chart.

Section 2: Setting Up Your Data for a Pie Chart

Before creating any chart, it’s crucial to format your data in a way Excel can interpret:

1. Open your Excel sheet and list the categories you want to represent in your pie chart in one column (e.g., A1
   ).
2. In the next column, input the corresponding values for each category (e.g., B1
   ).
3. Ensure that the values add up to a complete set, so they reflect parts of a whole.

Section 3: How to Create a Pie Chart in Excel

Follow these steps:

1. Select the data range you just set up (both the categories and values).
2. Go to the Insert tab at the top of Excel.
3. Look for the Charts group, and click on the Pie Chart icon.
4. Choose a pie chart style, such as a 2D or 3D pie chart.
5. Your pie chart will automatically appear on the worksheet, based on your selected data.

Section 4: Customizing Your Pie Chart

To make your pie chart more engaging and easier to understand, try these customization tips:

1. Change the Colors: Click on a slice, and Excel will open the Format Data Series pane. Choose different colors to make each slice stand out.
2. Add Data Labels: Right-click on a slice, choose Add Data Labels, and Excel will display the values or percentages directly on the chart.
3. Adjust the Title: Click on the default chart title and type a new title that accurately describes your data.

Section 5: How to Create a Doughnut Chart in Excel

The process for creating a doughnut chart is similar to a pie chart:

1. Select your data range.
2. Go to the Insert tab.
3. Under Charts, choose the Doughnut Chart option.
4. Excel will create a doughnut chart based on your selected data.

Section 6: Customizing Your Doughnut Chart

To make your doughnut chart as effective as possible:

1. Change Slice Colors: Just like with the pie chart, you can format each slice by selecting it and adjusting colors in the Format Data Series pane.
2. Adjust Ring Size: Right-click on the doughnut, choose Format Data Series, and adjust the Doughnut Hole Size to make the center smaller or larger.
3. Add Data Labels: Right-click on the chart, choose Add Data Labels, and select Value or Percentage.

Pie and doughnut charts are excellent for visualizing data proportions, and Excel makes them easy to create and customize. Whether you’re showing simple proportions with a pie chart or multiple data series with a doughnut chart, these steps will help you create clear and attractive visualizations.

Let me know in the comments if you have any questions or if there’s another Excel tutorial you'd like to see!