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: Using Dynamic Chart Titles.

Using Dynamic Chart Titles

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 7, 2022)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


There is a very cool way, apparently not well known, of adding 'active' or 'live' titles and other text to charts. In this way you can make a change in a worksheet and have that change reflected in a title in the chart. Follow these steps:

  1. Create your chart as you normally would.
  2. Add whatever titles, datapoints, axis names, etc. are desired.
  3. Select the title you want to modify. Small handles should appear around the title.
  4. In the Formula bar enter the address of the cell you want to use for the title. For instance, if the title is in cell A1 of the MySheet worksheet, you would enter the following in the formula bar:
     =MySheet!$A$1

That's it. Now, whenever the contents of A1 are changed Excel updates the information in the chart's title.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2606) 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: Using Dynamic Chart Titles.

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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Determining if Caps Lock is On

If your macro needs to determine the status of the Caps Lock key, you need the code in this tip. Just use the Information ...

Discover More

Replacing with a Subscript

The Find and Replace capabilities of Word are quite powerful. One type of replacing may not seem possible at ...

Discover More

Editing Individual Cells

Need to edit the data within a cell? There are any number of ways you can perform the edit; this tip documents them all.

Discover More

Save Time and Supercharge Excel! Automate virtually any routine task and save yourself hours, days, maybe even weeks. Then, learn how to make Excel do things you thought were simply impossible! Mastering advanced Excel macros has never been easier. Check out Excel 2010 VBA and Macros today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Setting Default Attributes for Lines and Arrows

Don't like the way that Excel formats lines and arrows? You can easily make your own formatting changes, and then use ...

Discover More

Inserting a Watermark Behind Merged Cells

If you have a group of merged cells into which you want a user to enter information, you may want some sort of ...

Discover More

Resize Graphics Outside of Excel

Graphics are a common addition to almost any workbook. If you need to change the size of your graphics (which Excel lets ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 0 + 7?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.