Line charts

Use a line chart when you want to find trends in data over time. For example, get trends in sales or profit margins each month, quarter, or year.

Learn how to add & edit a chart.

Line chart

How to format your data

 
  • First column: Enter a label to describe the data. Labels from the first column show up on the horizontal axis.
  • First row (Optional): In the first row of each column, enter a category name. Entries in the first row show up as labels in the legend.
  • Other columns: For each column, enter numeric data. You can also add a category name (optional).
  • Other cells: Enter the data points you’d like to display.
  • Rows: Each row represents a different line in the chart.

Tip: If the chart doesn’t show the data on the axis you want, learn how to switch rows and columns.

Examples

Annual home sales
Year New construction Existing
2014 213,933 123,345
2015 196,334 145,899
2016 218,986 189,000
2017 355,698 200,433
2018 415,320 340,210
Line chart showing new and existing home sales

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Monthly device sales
Month Phones Tablets Laptops
Jan 76 10 30
Feb 69 18 25
March 45 35 35
April 74 60 50
May 65 55 40
June 80 67 42

Line chart showing phone, tablet, and laptop sales

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Other types of line charts

Combo chart

Use a combo chart when you want to represent different data series using lines and bars.

Combo chart

How to format your data

Example

Income statement

Year Revenue Net Income Profit margin
2014 $43,000 $5,900 14%
2015 $56,400 $8,800 16%
2016 $67,988 $10,500 15%
2017 $78,333 $13,500 17%
2018 $94,500 $16,500 17%
Combo chart showing revenue, net income, and profit margin

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Customize a line chart

  1. On your computer, open a spreadsheet in Google Sheets.
  2. Double-click the chart you want to change.
  3. At the right, click Customize.
  4. Choose an option:

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