Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Excel 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Excel, click here: Make that Chart Quickly!.

Make that Chart Quickly!

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 27, 2020)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


Sometimes going through the Chart Wizards seems to take forever. If you want to put a chart into your workbook very quickly, you can follow these two simple steps:

  1. Select the table on which the chart is to be based.
  2. Press F11.

That's it! Excel inserts a new chart worksheet before the current worksheet, and bases the chart on the data in your table and the default chart type you have set up. At this point you can perform whatever customization you desire on the chart and work with it as normal.

If you prefer an embedded chart to a chart worksheet, then the shortcut you should use in F11 is, instead, Alt+F1.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2210) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Make that Chart Quickly!.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

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