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How to change scale of axis in chart in Excel?

Author Sun Last modified

Sometimes, when you insert a chart in Excel, the scale of axis may be too small to show all of the units clearly as shown as below. In this case, you can change the axis units to meet the chart size in Excel.

a screenshot showing the default scale of axis in a chart

Change scale of axis in chart

Change scale of axis in chart

You can change the axis units to change the scale of axis.

1. Right click at the axis you want to change, select Format Axis from context menu. See screenshot:

a screenshot showing how to open the Format Axis dialog

2. In the Format Axis dialog, check Major unit’s Fixed option, then in the text box, type a new unit you need. See screenshot:

a screenshot showing new unit entered

Tip: If you think the scale of axis is so large, you can type a smaller unit, whereas, type a larger unit.

3. Click Close to exit dialog. Now you can see the scale of axis is changed.

a screenshot showing the new scale of axis in a chart

In Excel 2013, you can change the scale of axis in a chart with following steps:

1. Right click the axis you want to change, select Format Axis from context menu.

2. In the Format Axis pane in the right, click the Axis Options button, and change the number in the Major box in the Units section. See screen shot below:

a screenshot showing new unit entered in Excel 2013

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