Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated September 30, 2023)
This tip applies to Excel 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365
Excel 2010 introduced a new feature referred to as sparklines. They are nothing more than miniature charts that can appear inside a single cell. The graphs aren't as varied and full-featured as regular Excel charts, but they are pretty cool, nonetheless. They are especially good for showing, at a glance, the general trend of the numbers in a range of cells.
To create a sparkline, follow these steps:
Figure 1. The Create Sparkline dialog box.
You should see your sparkline appear immediately in the cell you specified in step 1.
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (12588) applies to Microsoft Excel 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365.
Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!
A common place to use Excel charts is in your PowerPoint presentations. How you paste those charts into the presentation ...
Discover MorePie charts are a great way to graphically display some types of data. Displaying negative values is not so great in pie ...
Discover MoreWhen creating a chart based on data in a worksheet, you may want to sort the information in the chart without rearranging ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
2023-10-04 12:54:55
Dave S
Sparklines can be useful, for the reason given above. But if the end user's requirements require more than one line (for example, to show trend relative to some target value) remember that you can create your own 'sparkline' by placing a normal chart into a cell. Create the chart, delete everything apart from the lines, then snap fit chart area to a cell and finally snap fit the plot area to the cell. As it is a real chart you can change line type, thickness and colour as required.
Got a version of Excel that uses the ribbon interface (Excel 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the menu interface.
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments