Please feel free to have another look here: Tips for line graphs
I am using the same data as in my article on line charts, sales results from 10 European countries over a period of 4 years. As you can see the items in the 2020 column have been sorted from top to bottom in the datasheet.
A bar chart is ideally suited to compare values, for clarity I have hidden the previous years in the datasheet so that only the current year is shown. I have chosen a horizontal bar chart so you can compare the data more easily and there is more space for text.
The chart has been enlarged after placement to cover just about the entire slide. As there are 4 data columns the color of the bars is Gold accent 4 from the default PPT theme. The chart looks like this after inserting it:
1. Adjust the gap width between bars, apply if necessary another fill color and add a border
The default gap between the bars is 182% of the height of the bar. That is simply too much.
Double click a bar, in the Format data series task pane adjust the Gap Width. In the example I lowered it to 80 %.
Click any bar, all the bars will be selected then under Chart tools go to the Format tab, click the Shape fill button and choose a suitable color, in the example I chose the blue accent 1 swatch.
Then click the Shape outline button an apply the color black and change the thickness to 1 1/2 points.
Double click a bar, in the Format data series task pane adjust the Gap Width. In the example I lowered it to 80 %.
Click any bar, all the bars will be selected then under Chart tools go to the Format tab, click the Shape fill button and choose a suitable color, in the example I chose the blue accent 1 swatch.
Then click the Shape outline button an apply the color black and change the thickness to 1 1/2 points.
2. Change the order of the bars, from top to bottom The default order of bars is in reverse rank order.
The bars are ordered with the first (highest) data point at the bottom. If you want to rank the bars with the longest bar at the top you have to reverse the order. Double click the Y-axis, in the Format axis pane under Axis position check the Categories
in reverse order checkbox.
3. Delete the legend, gridlines and the x-axis data if they do not contribute to the clarity of the chart
4. Add data labels to the chart
Select a bar and click on the Add chart element button, check Data labels and choose the position of the label in our case Inside end, the click More options, under Number use the currency symbol and remove the two decimal places.
Select the labels and change the font color and size if necessary.
5. Change the font and font size of the text on the axis and title
The text on the chart is too small. Select the Y-axis and choose another font and font size. Do the same with your title.
6. Finally emphasize the most important items in the chart
In my example I changed the bar with the highest sales and the bar of my country. To do that click on a bar (all the bars are selected) and click again to select only one. Change the color with the shape fill button.
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