A time comes when you need to sum up a large dataset in a little space, that’s where Sparklines come to use. An easy and effective way to accommodate larger datasets in a little space is Line Sparkline Excel. Using these micro charts, you can present data trends within a single cell.
What are Sparklines?
Most likely, if you are a beginner you would not have an idea about what a sparkline is.
Basically, sparklines are little charts that exist in a cell. These tiny charts are helpful in presenting a trend over time or any change in the dataset. The blend data can become attractive by using these sparklines as it adds layers of visual analysis.
One thing you must remember is that sparklines are not compatible with standard charts in functionality.
Importance of Sparklines
Similar to other features, sparklines would definitely have some characteristics that make them important. Sometimes, a regular chart could create confusion while analyzing therefore, Sparklines are used to get rid of this problem. This is a handy trick used for visual presentation in dashboards from a larger dataset.
You will find sparklines in a cell similar to other data. And they get fitted by default once the Excel increases its size.
Different Kinds of Sparklines in Excel
Excel lets you avail multiple kinds of Sparkline that you can choose from the Insert menu. We have three main kinds of Sparkline used in Excel.
Line Sparkline
You will notice this kind of Sparkline in the form of lines and if there are fluctuations in the high values, you will notice a difference in height as well.
Column Sparkline
This kind of sparkline appears in the form of a column chart or bar chart. Each bar indicates each value.
Win/Loss Sparkline
When you have a negative value set such as ups and downs on the floated cost, this kind of sparkline is used.
Your data will appear visually on the basis of the type you have selected for the visual presentation. Line sparkline is a little chart similar to a line chart, whereas the column is a small bar chart and win/loss refers to waterfall charts.
How You Can Add Line Sparkline Excel?
Let’s understand the process by following the steps given below:
Choose the cells that needed to represent in the sparkline chart. For instance, here we have selected the cells between B2 and I2.
Click on the Insert option from the header toolbar and then choose the Sparklines option.
Now, a drop-down menu will appear, from which you need to choose any type of sparkline chart. Here we have selected line sparkline.
Once the type of sparkline is selected, a dialog box will appear. Add the cell in which you need to insert the sparkline chart from the Select where you want to place the sparkline text field.
Pros of Line Sparkline Excel
We have found some advantages of Sparklines:
- With Sparklines, data fluctuations are easy to understand.
- Sparklines help in presenting data such as temperature or stock market price.
- Using Sparklines, analyzing data trends for a specific time is easier.
- You can make data reports for a shorter time with these mini charts.
- Transformation of data in compact form is also convenient.
- For a better understanding of high and low data points, you can avail of Sparklines.
- Sparklines can easily float negative values.
- Moreover, you can adjust Sparklines’ size automatically when the width of the cell changes.
Wrap it Up
Sparklines as you know are important and play a vital role in presenting Excel datasets in a better way. When you need to remove a Sparkline, you cannot do it with just a single key press.
Sparklines are not recommended for axes or coordinates and you can apply them on a single column or row. You can use them for highlighting multiple data points. They can fit into a single cell as well.
