In Excel you can clearly create histograms with bins of the same size. Excel also automatically calculates the cumulative frequencies for you.
Create a histogram in Excel – this is how it works
If you want to display a histogram, i.e. the graphical representation of a frequency distribution, in Excel, all you have to do is follow the following instructions.
- First activate the analysis functions under “Windows Button” > “Excel Options” > “Add-ins” > “Go to” > “Analysis Functions”.
- Then enter your (sorted) original list and the upper class limits.
- Then click on “Data analysis” in the “Data” tab (this tool is only available after activating the analysis functions, see point 1).
- Then click “Insert” and then “Insert Statistic Chart” and “Histogram”. Alternatively, you can go to “Recommended Charts” from the “All Charts” tab.
- For the output range, click on the first cell of a new column and tick “cumulative frequencies” and “diagram display”. Then generate the histogram.
Then: Format histogram
Initially, the chart in Excel looks like a column chart. Therefore, right-click on a column and open “Format Axis”.
- Choose the options you want to use to format. Example: Select the “Row Options” tab and change the “Gap Width” to “No Spacing”.
- Now you can select the “Single Color Line” and a color under “Frame Color” and change the frame thickness to 2pt, for example, in “Border Type” in order to be able to distinguish between the individual classes.