How to Create a Bell Curve Chart in Microsoft Excel
It’s actually pretty simple to create
Graphs and Excel charts are a great way to visualize complex datasets, and Bell curves are no exception. They let you analyze a normal distribution easily and can be easily created in Excel. Let’s find out how.
Keep in mind that the purpose of a bell curve goes beyond simply prettifying the data. There are many forms of data analysis that can be performed on such a chart, revealing many trends and characteristics of the dataset. For this guide, though, we will be only focusing on creating a bell curve, not analyzing it.
Introduction to a Normal Distribution
Bell curves are only useful to visualize datasets that are distributed normally. So before we dive into bell curves, let us take a look into what a normal distribution even means.
Basically, any dataset where the values are largely clustered around the mean can be called a normal distribution (or a Gaussian distribution as it is sometimes called). Most naturally collected datasets tend to be like that, from employee performance numbers to weekly sales figures.
What Is a Bell Curve And Why Is It Useful?
Since the data points of a normal distribution are clustered around the mean, it is more useful to measure the variance of each data point from the central mean rather than its absolute value. And plotting these variances in the form of a graph yields a Bell Curve.
This allows you to spot the outliers at a glance, as well as see the relative performance of the data points with respect to the average. For things like employee appraisals and student scores, this gives you the ability to tell the underperformers apart.
How to Create a Bell Curve
Unlike many simple charts in Excel, you cannot create a bell curve by simply running a wizard on your dataset. The data needs a bit of pre-processing first. Here is what you need to do:
What Is the Best Way of Creating a Bell Curve Chart in MS Excel?
Bell curve charts might seem complicated, but are actually pretty simple to create. All you need is the normal distribution points of your dataset.
First, determine the mean and the standard deviation using built-in Excel formulas. Then use these values to calculate the normal distribution of the entire dataset.
The bell curve chart is just aScatter with Smooth Linesplot using the original data points for the x-axis and the normal distribution values for the y-axis. If your dataset was normally distributed, you will get a smooth bell curve in Excel.
Now that you know how to create a bell curve chart in Excel, look at how tomake a Gantt chart,heat map, orwaterfall chartfor your next project.
Levin Roy is a software engineer who loves writing about technology. Whether it is Windows tips-and-tricks or in-depth guides about application development, Levin uses his practical experience and technical skills to create articles that can help solve tricky problems.Read Levin’s Full Bio
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