How to Make a Budget Pie Chart in Excel, by ExcelDemy on YouTube. 5 min 16 s.
- Video length
- 5 min 16 s
- Time to do it
- 10 minutes
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 7
What you need
Steps
Open a blank Excel sheet and list your budget categories in one column, such as rent, food, transport, utilities and savings.
Enter the amount for each category in the column next to it. Use numbers only, without currency symbols or text.
Select both columns, then format the amount column as currency and add bold headers so the table is easy to read.
With the data selected, go to Insert > Pie Chart and choose a 2-D pie chart. Check that Excel uses your category names as labels.
Click the chart, use Chart Design > Add Chart Element to add data labels, then show the category name, value or percentage.
Change the chart title to something like Monthly Budget, remove the legend if the labels already name each slice, and pick a clear chart style.
Drag the chart border to resize it and place it beside the table. Save the workbook so your budget chart is kept.
Tips and common mistakes
Sort the table from largest to smallest before inserting the chart so the slices are easier to compare.
Keep category names short, such as Rent, Food and Travel, so the chart labels stay readable.
Use a pie chart only when all categories add up to one total, such as one month of spending.
If you add a new budget category, update the chart source range so the new slice appears.
Questions
Why does my pie chart show only one slice?
Excel may have selected only one column or treated the amounts as text. Select both the category and amount columns and check that each amount is a number.
How do I show percentages on the pie chart?
Use Add Chart Element > Data Labels, then open More Options and tick Percentage. You can also show the category name and value.
Can I update the chart after changing an amount?
Yes, the chart updates when the source cells change. If it does not, right-click the chart, choose Select Data and expand the range to include the new cells.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
