Change the scale of the horizontal (category) axis in a chart (2024)

WindowsmacOS

1. In a chart, click to select the category axis that you want to change, or do the following to select the axis from a list of chart elements:

   1. Click anywhere in the chart.

      This displays the Chart Tools, adding the Design and Format tabs.

   2. On the Format tab, in the Current Selection group, click the arrow in the box at the top, and then click Horizontal (Category) Axis.

2. On the Format tab, in the Current Selection group, click Format Selection.

3. In the Format Axis pane, do any of the following:

   Important:The following scaling options are available only when a category axis is selected.

   See Also

   Change axis labels in a chart

   • To reverse the order of categories, expand Axis Options, and then select the Categories in reverse order check box.

   • To change the axis type to a text or date axis, expand Axis Options, and then under Axis Type, select Text axis or Date axis. Text and data points are evenly spaced on a text axis. A date axis displays dates in chronological order at set intervals or base units, such as the number of days, months or years, even if the dates on the worksheet are not in order or in the same base units.

     Note:Selected by default, Automatically select based on data determines the axis type that makes the most sense for your type of data.

   • To change the point where you want the vertical (value) axis to cross the horizontal (category) axis, expand Axis Options, and then under Vertical axis crosses, select At category number and type the number that you want in the text box, or select At maximum category to specify that the vertical (value) axis cross the horizontal (category) axis after the last category on the x-axis.

   • To change the interval between tick marks, expand Tick Marks, and then in the Interval between tick marks box, type the number that you want.

     Note:The number that you type determines how many categories are displayed between the tick marks.

   • To change the placement of the axis tick marks, expand Tick Marks, and then select any of the options that you want in the Major type and Minor type boxes.

   • To change the interval between axis labels, expand Labels, and then under Interval between labels, select Specify interval unit and type the number you want in the text box.

     Tip:Type 1 to display a label for every category, 2 to display a label for every other category, 3 to display a label for every third category, and so on.

   • To change the placement of axis labels, expand Labels, and then in the Distance from axis box, type the number that you want.

     Tip:Type a smaller number to place the labels closer to the axis. Type a larger number if you want more distance between the label and the axis.

By default, the minimum and maximum scale values of each axis in a chart are calculated automatically. However, you can customize the scale to better meet your needs. For example, if all the data points in your data table are between 60 and 90, you might want the value (y) axis to have a range of 50 to 100 instead of 0 to 100. When a value axis covers a very large range, you can also change the axis to a logarithmic scale (also known as log scale).

1. This step applies to Word for Mac only: On the View menu, click Print Layout.

2. Click the chart.

3. On the Format tab, click Horizontal (Category) Axis in the dropdown list and then click Format Pane.

4. In the Format Axis pane, do any of the following:

   Important:The following scaling options are available only when a category axis is selected.

   • To reverse the order of categories, expand Axis Options, and then select the Categories in reverse order check box.

   • To change the axis type to a text or date axis, expand Axis Options, and then under Axis Type, select Text axis or Date axis. Text and data points are evenly spaced on a text axis. A date axis displays dates in chronological order at set intervals or base units, such as the number of days, months or years, even if the dates on the worksheet are not in order or in the same base units.

     Note:Selected by default, Automatically select based on data determines the axis type that makes the most sense for your type of data.

   • To change the point where you want the vertical (value) axis to cross the horizontal (category) axis, expand Axis Options, and then under Vertical axis crosses, select At category number and type the number that you want in the text box, or select At maximum category to specify that the vertical (value) axis cross the horizontal (category) axis after the last category on the x-axis.

   • To change the interval between tick marks, expand Tick Marks, and then in the Interval between tick marks box, type the number that you want.

     Note:The number that you type determines how many categories are displayed between the tick marks.

   • To change the placement of the axis tick marks, expand Tick Marks, and then select any of the options that you want in the Major type and Minor type boxes.

   • To change the interval between axis labels, expand Labels, and then under Interval between labels, select Specify interval unit and type the number you want in the text box.

     Tip:Type 1 to display a label for every category, 2 to display a label for every other category, 3 to display a label for every third category, and so on.

   • To change the placement of axis labels, expand Labels, and then in the Distance from axis box, type the number that you want.

     Tip:Type a smaller number to place the labels closer to the axis. Type a larger number if you want more distance between the label and the axis.

   • To position the label, expand Labels, and select an option in the dropdown list box.