Can I switch chart types?

There are built-in conversion features for many chart types:

• Convert between stacked and clustered segment charts, line charts, and area charts by selecting the chart and choosing the type from the floating toolbar. For details please refer to 3.8.5 Chart type in the user manual.
• Decide for each series individually if you want to show a column segment or a line by selecting the series and choosing the type from the floating toolbar. For details please refer to 7.7 Combination chart in the user manual.
• Switch column charts (including waterfall and Mekko charts) to bar charts and vice versa simply by dragging the chart's rotation handle. For details please refer to 3.3 Rotating and flipping elements in the user manual. All labels stay horizontal and the layout of the chart is recalculated to make everything fit.
• Toggle the value axis between absolute and percent representations. The results depend on the chart type. For details please refer to Adjusting the value axis type in the user manual.
• Convert a scatter chart into a bubble chart (and vice versa) simply by adding or removing the values in the datasheet's "Size" column. For details please refer to 12. Scatter chart and bubble chart in the user manual.

Switching between other chart types is best achieved by creating the new chart next to the existing one and copy-pasting the data from the old datasheet to the new one. Sometimes you may have to reinterpret the data. E.g., in a bubble chart each data point has three dimensions (x, y, and size), while in a column chart it has only one dimension (y).

If you want to explore multiple ways of displaying the same data, we suggest you use an Excel data link (see 21. Excel data links). You can create as many charts as you want all linked to the same Excel data range. This way, when data changes all linked charts can be updated to reflect the change and you can easily compare the results.