Q. How do I change the numbers in my Excel chart?

By default, Microsoft Excel determines the minimum and maximum scale values of the value (y) axis in a chart. You can, however, customize the scale to better meet your needs.

1. In a chart sheet or an embedded chart, click the value (y) axis that you want to change.

2. On the Format menu, click Selected Axis.

 Note   The Selected Axis command is only available when a chart axis is selected.

3. On the Scale tab, do one or more of the following:

 Important   The following scaling options are only available when a value (y) axis is selected. The Scale tab provides different options for a category (x) axis.

• To change the number at which the value axis starts or ends, type a different number in the Minimum box or the Maximum box.
• To change the interval of tick marks and chart gridlines, type a different number in the Major unit box or Minor unit box.
• To change the units displayed on the value axis, select the units that you want in the Display units list.

If you want to show a label that describes the units, select the Show display units label on chart check box.

 Tip   If the chart values are large numbers, you can make the axis text shorter and more readable by changing the display unit of the axis. For example, you can display chart values ranging from 1,000,000 to 50,000,000 as 1 to 50 on the axis and show a label that indicates that the units are expressed in millions.

• To change the value axis to logarithmic, select the Logarithmic scale check box.

 Tip   This type of scale is useful when the values that are plotted in the chart cover a very large range.

• To reverse the order of the values on the selected axis, select the Values in reverse order check box.

 Note   When you change the order of the values on the value (y) axis from bottom to top, the category labels on the category (x) axis will flip from the bottom to the top of the chart. Likewise, when you change the order of the categories from left to right, the value labels will flip from the left side to the right side of the chart.

• To specify the value at which the category (x) axis crosses the value (y) axis, type that value in the Category (X) axis crosses at box.
• To force the x-axis, cross the value axis at the highest value, and select the Category (X) axis crosses at maximum value check box. This effectively moves the category labels to the opposite side of the chart.

 Note   This option overrides the Category X crosses at value.

 Tip   XY (scatter) charts show values on both the category (x) axis and the value (y) axis, while line charts show values on only the value (y) axis. This difference is an important factor in deciding which chart type to use. Because the scale of the line chart's category axis can't be changed as much as the scale of the value axis that is used in the xy (scatter) chart, you might consider using an xy (scatter) chart instead of a line chart if you need to change the scaling of that axis or display it as a logarithmic scale.