Question

I want to plot a time series frequency data similar to the below. I tried many types of charts but they all put the time (ie 08:00) exactly under data series column, I also tried to type 8-9 , 9-10, 10-11 …but that looks awful just because time series needs to be continuous. I want to have 8:00 and 18:00 as the starting and ending points and data series should come above intervals, between 8-9-10-11 etc.. Any suggestions?

08:00:00 - 09:00:00     12
09:00:00 - 10:00:00     11
10:00:00 - 11:00:00     13
11:00:00 - 12:00:00     12

Answer 1

You can get good Time Series graphs in Excel, the way you want, but you have to work with a few quirks.

1. Be sure to select “Scatter Graph” (with a line option). This is needed if you have non-uniform time stamps, and will scale the X-axis accordingly.

2. In your data, you need to add a column with the mid-point. Here’s what I did with your sample data. (This trick ensures that the data gets plotted at the mid-point, like you desire.)
   

3. You can format the x-axis options with this menu. (Chart->Design->Layout)
   

4. Select “Axes” and go to Primary Horizontal Axis, and then select “More Primary Horizontal Axis Options“

5. Set up the options you wish. (Fix the starting and ending points.)
   

6. And you will get a graph such as the one below.
   

You can then tweak many of the options, label the axes better etc, but this should get you started.

Hope this helps you move forward.