A scatter plot is a built-in chart type in Excel meant to show the relationship between two variables. A scatter plot works by placing one variable on the vertical axis and a different variable on the horizontal axis. Each piece of data is then plotted as a discrete point on the chart. In a scatter plot, both the X and Y axis display values – an XY chart has no category axis.
By convention, the X axis represents arbitrary values that do not depend on another variable, referred to as the independent variable . Y values are placed on the vertical axis, and represent the dependent variable.
Pros
- Can show the relationship of one variable to another
- Visual display of correlation
- Ideal for many types of scientific data
Cons
- Not as well understood as many other chart types
- Suitable only for data where correlation is expected
The Doughnut Chart is a built-in chart type in Excel. Doughnut charts are meant to express a “part-to-whole” relationship, where all pieces together represent 100%. Doughnut charts work best to display data with a small number of categories (2-5). For example, you could use a doughnut chart to plot survey questions with a small number of answers, data split by gender, Windows vs. Mac users, or other data where categories are limited.
Doughnut charts should be avoided when there are many categories, or when categories do not sum to 100%.
Pros
- Simple, compact presentation
- Can be read “at a glance”
- Excel will calculate percentages automatically
Cons
- Difficult to compare relative size of slices
- Become cluttered and dense as categories are added
- Limited to part-to-whole data
- Poor at showing change over time
Tips
- Limit categories
- Consider other charts to show change over time
