Scatter charts show numeric coordinates along the horizontal (X) and vertical (Y) axes. Use a scatter chart when you want to find out how much one variable is affected by another. For example, plot the salary of employees and years of experience.
Learn how to add & edit a chart.
How to format your data
- First column: Enter values for the X 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: Enter Y values. Each column of Y-values shows up as a series of points on the chart.
- Other rows: Each row is a point on the chart.
Tips:
- Add a trendline to find patterns in your data.
- The closer the data points come to making a straight line, the stronger the correlation between the 2 variables.
Examples
Ice cream sales & temperature| Temperature(In Fahrenheit) | Ice Cream Sales |
|---|---|
| 54 | $125 |
| 58 | $175 |
| 59 | $325 |
| 62 | $275 |
| 64 | $425 |
| 65 | $400 |
| 67 | $450 |
| 72 | $425 |
| 73 | $450 |
| 75 | $525 |
| 77 | $550 |
| 80 | $625 |
| Month | Expenses | Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| January | $90,000 | $110,000 |
| February | $120,000 | $115,000 |
| March | $100,000 | $117,000 |
| April | $110,000 | $130,000 |
| May | $125,000 | $127,000 |
| June | $60,000 | $80,000 |
| July | $50,000 | $87,000 |
| August | $70,000 | $95,000 |
| September | $100,000 | $110,000 |
| October | $120,000 | $133,000 |
| November | $145,000 | $150,000 |
| December | $90,000 | $120,000 |
Other types of scatter charts
Bubble chartUse a bubble chart to show data with 3 dimensions. Like a scatter chart, the first 2 dimensions are the horizontal (X) and vertical (Y) axes. The third dimension is the size of the bubble.
Learn how to add & edit a chart.
How to format your data
- Column 1: Enter a label. The label shows up inside the bubble.
- Column 2: Enter values for the X axis.
- Column 3: Enter values for the Y axis. Each column of Y-values will show as a series of points on the chart.
- Column 4: Enter the name of the data series. Each data series is a different color. The name shows up in the legend.
- Column 5: Enter a number for the size of the bubble.
- Rows: Each row represents a bubble on the chart.
Example
District enrollment
| School | Number of students | Acceptance Rate | School Type | Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summerville Prep | 400 | 95 | Elementary | 9 |
| Sunset Academy | 750 | 75 | Elementary | 8 |
| Eastwood Middle School | 250 | 40 | Middle school | 10 |
| Greenlands High School | 400 | 65 | High school | 7 |
| West Shores High school | 500 | 30 | High school | 6 |
Customize a scatter chart
- On your computer, open a spreadsheet in Google Sheets.
- Double-click the chart you want to change.
- At the right, click Customize.
- Choose an option:
- Chart style: Change how the chart looks.
- Chart & axis titles: Edit or format title text.
- Series: Change point colors, axis location, or add error bars, data labels, or trendline.
- Legend: Change legend position and text.
- Horizontal axis: Edit or format axis text, or reverse axis order.
- Vertical axis: Edit or format axis text, set min or max value, or log scale.
- Gridlines: Add and edit gridlines.
- Bubble: For bubble charts, change how the bubble looks.