How to Create a Money Graph by Using Microsoft Excel 2003

1. Enter the data for your graph in a new or existing spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel 2003. Include a relevant title for each monetary amount as this is the information that will appear on your graph and help you identify what each number is. For example, on a graph comparing your various household expenses, you may list 'groceries, rent and utilities' with the amount for each in the cell beside the title.
2. Format the numbers in your graph as currency. Highlight the numbers and click 'Format' in the menu bar, then select 'Cells.' In the number tab, set the category to 'Currency.' You can then set the number of decimal points you want behind the numbers and the currency symbol that you prefer.
3. Highlight the numbers and titles for the numbers that you want to include in your money graph. Click on the 'Chart Wizard' icon in the toolbar.
4. Select the type of chart that you want to create from the window that will pop up for the chart wizard. You can create all the standard types of graphs, such as column graphs, bar graphs, line graphs and pie charts. Other options include an XY scatter, doughnut graph, bubble graph or stock graph. If you are graphing your expenses over a period of months, a line graph will quickly show you if they've gone up or down. A pie chart is an effective way to see how big of a chunk each individual expense is taking out of the total.
5. Choose the chart sub-type for your selected chart. This determines exactly how the finished chart will look. Most chart types are available flat or with various 3-D effects.
6. Click 'Next' to continue to the next step of creating your graph. Check the data range to make sure you are using the correct information for your chart. Identify whether the series in the selected data runs in the row or column. If the titles for each amount run horizontally along the top of the page with the numbers beneath, your series is in rows. If the labels are in a vertical list with the numbers set next to each label, you have a series in columns.
7. Select 'Next' and enter a title for your chart. You can also label the X and Y axis and determine where the legend for your graph will appear on the finished page.
8. Go to the next page of the set up and determine the page where your graph will appear. Click on the graph to open the chart menu. You can make additional changes to the graph here if you are unsatisfied with your results.