In the “Format Data Series” dialog, set “Separated” to 100% and “Gap Width” to 0% (or close to 0%). Click any of the orange bars to select them all, right-click, and select “Format Data Series.” Remove excess white space between the bars: To achieve a cleaner look for your Gantt chart, follow these steps: In the same “Format Axis” window, set “Major unit” and “Minor unit” to “Fixed” and specify the desired date intervals. Click on any date above the task bars in your Gantt chart, and under Axis Options, change “Minimum” to “Fixed,” entering the recorded number. Right-click on the first Start Date in your data table, select “Format Cells” > “General,” and note the numeric representation of the date. To bring your tasks closer to the left vertical axis, follow these steps: Remove the empty space on the left side of the Gantt chart: Originally, the blue bars representing start dates occupied space at the beginning of your Gantt diagram. Your Excel Gantt chart is taking shape, but a few finishing touches can elevate its style: Step 6: Enhancing Your Excel Gantt Chart Design This fine-tunes your Excel Gantt chart to mimic a traditional Gantt chart accurately. These adjustments make the blue bars transparent, leaving only the orange segments representing your tasks.Īdditionally, you can adjust the order of tasks to align with your project’s requirements.
Select your project’s Duration data, ensuring not to include the header or empty cells.In the “Edit Series” window, name this series “Duration” or a name of your choosing.
In the “Select Data Source” window, the Start Date is already present under Legend Entries (Series).Right-click within the chart area and select “Select Data.”.To enhance your Excel Gantt chart, add another series to represent the task durations: Step 3: Incorporating Duration Data into the Chart The result will be a stacked bar chart added to your Excel sheet. Under the 2-D Bar section, choose Stacked Bar.Navigate to the Insert tab > Charts group and select Bar.Select the range of your Start Dates, including the column header (e.g., B1:B11).To create your Gantt chart, commence by setting up a typical Stacked Bar chart: Step 2: Crafting a Standard Excel Bar Chart Based on Start Date If you have both Start and End dates, you can calculate the Duration using one of these formulas, depending on your preference: *Tip: To create an Excel Gantt chart, only the Start date and Duration columns are essential. Each task should occupy a distinct row, and structure your project plan to include the start date, end date, and duration (i.e., the number of days needed to complete the tasks). Initiate your Gantt chart project by inputting your project’s details into an Excel spreadsheet. We’ll use Excel 2010 for this example, but the process is consistent from Excel 2013 through Excel 365. Follow these steps closely, and you’ll have a simple Gantt chart in under three minutes. However, by harnessing Excel’s bar graph functionality and some formatting wizardry, you can swiftly create a Gantt chart. Regrettably, Microsoft Excel doesn’t offer a built-in Gantt chart template. A Gantt chart ensures that you can efficiently track your tasks against their planned timeframes and predefined milestones. It serves as a blueprint for project structures, highlighting start and finish dates, as well as relationships between project activities. This powerful visual representation, created using Microsoft Excel, organizes projects or tasks through cascading horizontal bar charts.
The Gantt chart, a vital tool for project management, takes its name from Henry Gantt, an American mechanical engineer and management consultant who pioneered this chart in the early 1910s.