Pivot Charts

A regular chart is connected to a fixed cell range. A pivot chart is connected to a pivot table. This distinction changes everything about how it behaves: when you change the pivot table — adding a field, applying a filter, changing a grouping — the chart updates immediately to reflect the new structure. There is no data range to manually adjust, no series to redefine.

Creating a Pivot Chart

How Fields Map to the Chart

1. Rows → X-axis labels (Values appear along the horizontal axis — months, categories, stores);
2. Columns → Series / legend (Each unique value becomes a separate line or bar group);
3. Values → Y-axis / bar height (Controls what is measured — height of bars or position of points);
4. Filters → Chart filter (Filtering the pivot table immediately narrows what the chart shows).

Task

1. Create a PivotChart (Column)

   Click anywhere inside your PivotTable. Go to PivotTable Analyze → PivotChart and select Clustered Column, then click OK.

2. Change the perspective

   In the PivotTable, move Category to Columns and Store to Rows (or reverse them).

3. Create a trend view (Line Chart)

   Ensure Order Date (grouped by Month) is in Rows and Revenue remains in Values. Insert a Line PivotChart.

4. Apply a filter

   Drag Salesperson into Filters and select one (e.g., Emily Carter).

5. Move the chart to a dashboard

   Select the chart and move it to a new or clean worksheet.