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Adding a horizontal line to a chart in Google Sheets can provide a clear visual separation between data points and aid in analyzing data trends. To do so, first select the chart and click on the “Customize” tab in the toolbar. Then, under “Series,” click on the data series for which you want to add a horizontal line. Next, click on the “Add” button and select “Line” from the drop-down menu. A line will then appear on the chart. To customize the line, click on it and adjust the line style, color, and thickness as desired. This simple process allows for the easy addition of a horizontal line to a chart in Google Sheets.
Add a Horizontal Line to a Chart in Google Sheets
Occasionally you may want to add a horizontal line to a chart in Google Sheets to represent a target line, an average line, or some other metric.
This tutorial provides a step-by-step example of how to quickly add a horizontal line to a chart in Google Sheets.
Step 1: Create the Data
For this example, we’ll create the following fake dataset that shows the total sales and the goal for total sales in five different regions for a certain company:
Step 2: Create a Combo Chart
Next, we’ll highlight cells A1:C6 as follows:
Next, click the Insert tab. Then click Chart from the dropdown menu:
In the Chart Editor that appears to the right, click Chart type and select Combo chart:
The following chart will appear that displays a bar for the sales of each region and a horizontal line that displays the goal for the sales:
This chart allows us to quickly see which regions have met (or exceeded) the sales goal and which regions have fallen short.
Note that we can also customize the color and the style of the line in the chart. For example, we could modify the line to be purple and dashed:
Step 3: Modify the Horizontal Line Value (Optional)
If we modify the values in the Goal column, the red horizontal line will automatically change in the chart.
For example, if we change the sales goal to 45 in the Goal column, the red line will automatically increase to 45 on the chart:
Additional Resources
The following tutorials explain how to perform other common operations in Google Sheets: