Thread: always label last point on x axis

Hi

is there any way to ensure that the last point is always labelled on the x-axis of a standard line or bar chart?

We use a lot of time series charts, and often the time period covered can’t be split into convenient blocks that allow x-axis labels to be shown for both the first and last data point.

As the date of the most recent point is usually more important than the start date, I’d like to ensure that the last point is always labelled, even if this means that the first point isn’t.

I’d also like to do this automatically, as we update lots of charts regularly

Is this possible?

Hi,

You can do this by adding a second data series that dynamically changes and is the last entry in the series you are already plotting.

Please see the attached example, and let me know how you get on.

Dave

Thanks for that reply.

It doesn’t quite address my problem, and I think that’s because I didn’t explain myself well. I don’t want a label on the series in the chart, but the for the last point, or tick mark, on the X axis always to have a label.

For example, in the attached I have two monthly time series covering a 17-month period from May 2006 to September 2007 inclusive. By default, Excel sets the major unit at 3 months and minor unit at one month on the x-axis, with the first point always labelled (May 2006). Because 17 is not a multiple of 3 (the major unit interval) the last tick mark to be labelled on the X axis is May 2007, not September 2007.

What I want is for date of the most recent data point always to be displayed on the X axis, even if this means the earliest point is not always labelled. This can be achieved in other stats and software packages (eg in the 2nd chart in the attached, a picture copied from another program), but I haven’t found how to do it in Excel.