# Excel charting question

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excel-charting-question/408974>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 22, 2007, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excel-charting-question/408974 "2007-06-22T10:56:39Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\
**Post date:** [June 22, 2007, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excel-charting-question/408974/1 "2007-06-22T10:56:39Z")

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I’m usually the person people I know come to for help in making Excel do what they want, so I’m chagrinned to be asking for help on this one.

I want to chart 2 different sets of numbers on the same chart in Excel, one on the left-hand x axis and one on the right-hand x axis, both over time, which will be on the y axis across the bottom. I see a way to do this in the chart options Excel gives me, but it requires that one of them be a line chart and the other a bar chart, and I really just want them both to be lines.

Can anyone help me to accomplish this?

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**Author:** ![Captain\_Quigers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce7236/32.png) [@Captain\_Quigers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Quigers)\
**Post date:** [June 22, 2007, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excel-charting-question/408974/2 "2007-06-22T11:11:08Z")

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Right click on one of the bars so that the data series is highlighted.

Select ‘Chart Type…’ and then pick the type of line you want to show on your chart.

This should change the bar to a line.

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**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\
**Post date:** [June 22, 2007, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excel-charting-question/408974/3 "2007-06-22T11:19:47Z")

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Just to get terminology straight, the left & right side vertical axes are called Y, the horizontal one across the bottom (and optionally top) is X.

In Excel 2003 select your two axes of data; do not select your time values. Then choose “Insert Chart” from the menu.

In the first pane of the wizard, choose the “Custom Types” tab & scroll down. Aabout 60% down is the choice “Lines on two axes”. Choose that.

In the second pane of the wizard, choose the “Series” tab and insert your X axis time value range in the “Category (X axis) labels” box.

Finish out the wizard from there.

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**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\
**Post date:** [June 22, 2007, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excel-charting-question/408974/4 "2007-06-22T11:32:25Z")

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Damn, I knew I’d get that axis naming convention backward. Thanks, all. I’ll give these a try.

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**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\
**Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excel-charting-question/408974/5 "2007-06-23T00:23:08Z")

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Thanks, all. I’ve now got what I want.