Graph Maker
Paste data from Excel, Google Sheets or a CSV file, choose from 12 chart types and download the graph as vector PDF, EPS or SVG, or as PNG, JPEG or TIFF at an exact size and DPI. It's built for figures that go into reports, slides, theses and journals. It's free, adds no watermark and needs no account, and your data never leaves your browser.
1. Data
2. Chart type
3. Titles & labels
4. Axis & numbers
5. Style & colours
6. Size & resolution
This size is too large for an image file in the browser. Lower the DPI, or use PDF, EPS or SVG, which stay sharp at any size.
Start from an example
Start from an output size
How to Make a Graph
- Add your data. Copy cells from Excel or Google Sheets and paste them into the box, import a CSV, TSV or Excel file, or start from an example.
- Pick a chart type. The preview updates as you type. Change titles, axis limits, number format, colours and legend position as you go.
- Choose the output size. Pick a preset for slides, documents or journals, or type an exact size in pixels, millimetres or inches with the DPI you need.
- Download. Save it as vector PDF, EPS or SVG, or as PNG, JPEG or TIFF. You can also copy it straight into PowerPoint, Word, Teams or Slack.
How to Lay Out Your Data
The first row holds the headers. The first column holds category names (or X values for a scatter plot), and every other column is one series:
| Month | Revenue | Revenue SD | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 120 | 8 | 82 |
| Feb | 135 | 11 | 88 |
| Mar | 151 | 9 | 97 |
A column whose header ends in SD, SEM, SE, CI, error or ± becomes the error bars of the series before it. Thousands separators, currency symbols, percent signs and accounting negatives like (500) are understood. Semicolon-separated files with decimal commas (1.234,5) are handled too. A histogram or box plot only needs the raw values, one per row.
If your numbers are in a PDF, pull the table out with the PDF Field Extractor. If they are in JSON, convert them with the JSON to CSV converter first.
Line, area and scatter charts, histograms and box plots handle tens of thousands of rows. Bar-type charts show the first 1,000 categories, and a pie groups everything after its 99th slice into Other, because past that point the bars and slices are too thin to read.
Which Chart Should I Use?
| Chart | Best for | Avoid when |
|---|---|---|
| Column / bar | Comparing amounts across categories; horizontal bars suit long category names | You have dozens of categories or a continuous time series |
| Stacked / 100% stacked | Showing how parts make up a total, or how the mix changes | Readers must compare the middle segments precisely |
| Line / area | Trends over time or any ordered sequence | Categories have no natural order |
| Scatter | The relationship between two numeric variables, with a fitted trendline | The X values are names rather than numbers |
| Histogram | The shape of one variable's distribution | You only have a handful of values |
| Box plot | Comparing spread, median and outliers between groups | Your audience hasn't seen box plots before; add a note |
| Pie / doughnut | One whole split into a few (2–6) parts | Parts are similar in size or there are many of them |
| Waterfall | Explaining how a starting value becomes an end value (profit bridges, budget variance) | The steps don't add up to a meaningful total |
| Pareto | Finding the few causes behind most of a problem (the 80/20 rule) | The categories can't be ranked by size |
| Dual axis | Two measures with different units, such as revenue and margin % | Both series share a unit (use one axis) |
In a waterfall chart, rows labelled Subtotal, Total, Net …, Ending …, Closing … or Balance are drawn as running-total bars, so you can leave their value blank.
For background, see how a profit and loss statement is laid out (a natural waterfall) and how ABC inventory analysis applies the 80/20 rule behind a Pareto chart.
Export Formats Compared
| Format | Type | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Vector | Journal submissions, print, LaTeX (\includegraphics), and any document where the chart must stay sharp | |
| EPS | Vector | Publishers and layout tools that still ask for Encapsulated PostScript |
| SVG | Vector | Websites, Figma, Illustrator and Inkscape. In PowerPoint, choose Convert to Shape to edit each element |
| PNG | Bitmap, lossless | Slides, documents and the web. The DPI is stored in the file, so Word and PowerPoint insert it at the intended size |
| TIFF | Bitmap, uncompressed | Journals that require TIFF. Includes the resolution tags |
| JPEG | Bitmap, lossy | Email and systems that accept only JPEG (charts look sharper as PNG) |
Print Sizes, DPI and Font Size
Pixels = DPI × size in inches. A 90 mm single-column figure at 1000 DPI is about 3,543 pixels wide. As one real example, Elsevier's artwork guidelines use these widths and resolutions:
| Target size | Width | Pixels at 300 DPI | Pixels at 500 DPI | Pixels at 1000 DPI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single column | 90 mm | 1,063 | 1,772 | 3,543 |
| 1.5 column | 140 mm | 1,654 | 2,756 | 5,512 |
| Full width | 190 mm | 2,244 | 3,740 | 7,480 |
The same guidelines ask for 300 DPI for photos, 500 DPI for combination art and 1000 DPI for line art such as graphs. Lettering should be about 7 pt at final size and never smaller than 6 pt. They name EPS as the preferred vector format and recommend Arial/Helvetica, Times, Courier or Symbol fonts. The PDF and EPS exports here use exactly those standard fonts. When you pick a physical size, the info line under the preview shows the smallest text size in points, so you can see whether it will be legible. Other publishers use different widths, so always check your journal's guide for authors.
What Makes This Graph Maker Different
- Vector exports for free. Many chart tools keep SVG, PDF, waterfall or dual-axis charts on paid plans, or add a credit line. Here every format and chart type is free.
- Exact physical sizes. Set a size in mm or inches and a DPI from 72 to 1000. PNG, JPEG and TIFF carry that DPI, and PDF/EPS pages are made at the real size.
- Built for analysis, not decoration. Error bars from SD/SEM/CI columns, six trendline types with equation and R², log scales, box plots with outliers, and automatic histogram bins.
- Accessible by default. Colour-blind-safe and greyscale palettes (lines get different dash patterns in greyscale), plus an automatic alt-text description you can paste into documents and web pages. Our alt text guide explains what a good chart description includes.
- Private. Confidential sales, lab or survey data never leaves your device. The page works on locked-down work laptops without uploads.
Tips for Clearer Graphs
- Start bar and column axes at zero. Cutting the axis exaggerates differences. Line charts don't need a zero baseline.
- Prefer a box plot or show the individual points when you have small samples. Bars of means can hide very different distributions.
- Use the colour-blind-safe palette for anything you publish. About 1 in 12 men has some form of colour vision deficiency.
- Put the unit in the axis title, for example Revenue (USD thousands), rather than repeating it on every tick.
- Say in the caption what the error bars show: SD, SEM or a 95% confidence interval. Our lab report guide covers captions and figures.