Easily Compare Your Actual and Target KPI / Metrics Values

Actual vs Target Chart Excel – Free Step-by-Step Tutorial and Templates

Comparing actual values against predefined targets is a very common requirement in creating business charts and dashboard reports. Every manager is responsible for their own budgets, goals, and objectives, and of course, targets to be met. This comparison is crucial for assessing performance, making informed decisions, and strategizing for future growth.

There are countless ways and approaches to visualize the comparison between two values. Sometimes, individual charts can be used for each value, allowing for a clear and focused view of each metric. In other cases, the two values can be displayed on a single chart, providing a direct comparison that can highlight discrepancies and trends effectively.

These two methods are particularly useful when we need to not only compare values but also track the trends of these values over time. For example, a simple line chart or column chart in Excel can be employed for this purpose. Line charts are excellent for showing trends over a period, while column charts can effectively illustrate the differences between actual and target values at specific intervals.

Why Use Actual vs Target Charts?

Actual vs Target charts serve several important functions in business reporting:

• Performance Tracking: They allow managers to quickly assess whether their teams are meeting their goals.
• Identifying Trends: By visualizing data over time, businesses can identify patterns that may require attention.
• Informed Decision-Making: Clear visual comparisons help in making strategic decisions based on performance data.
• Accountability: These charts can foster a culture of accountability, as teams can see how their performance stacks up against targets.

Step-by-Step Guide to Creating an Actual vs Target Chart in Excel

Creating an Actual vs Target chart in Excel is straightforward. Follow these steps to get started:

1. Gather Your Data: Compile the actual and target values in a structured format, typically in two columns.
2. Select Your Data: Highlight the data you want to include in your chart.
3. Insert Chart: Go to the ‘Insert’ tab in Excel, and choose either a Line Chart or a Column Chart from the Chart options.
4. Customize Your Chart: Use the Chart Tools to add titles, labels, and adjust colors to enhance readability.
5. Analyze Your Chart: Review the visual representation to assess performance against targets and identify any trends.

Free Templates

To make the process even easier, we offer free templates that you can download and customize for your specific needs. These templates come pre-formatted with sample data, allowing you to simply input your actual and target values and generate insightful charts in minutes.

In conclusion, Actual vs Target charts are invaluable tools for any business looking to track performance and make data-driven decisions. By utilizing Excel’s charting capabilities, you can create clear, informative visualizations that will help you and your team stay on track to meet your goals.

Comparing Values at a Single Point in Time

On the other hand, sometimes we need to compare values at a single point in time. For example, we can compare last month’s actual revenue versus last month’s target sales. This type of analysis is crucial for understanding how well we are performing against our goals.

In addition, we might want to do that for more than one metric or multiple key performance indicators (KPIs). This allows us to gain a comprehensive view of our performance across different areas of the business, helping us to identify strengths and weaknesses.

Approaches to Comparison

Now we can use two different approaches to visualize this data:

A. Multiple Charts

We can create a report with multiple charts, such as one chart for each KPI or metric. This approach allows for a detailed view of each individual metric, making it easier to analyze specific areas of performance. However, it may require more space and can be overwhelming if too many charts are included.

B. Single Chart with Multiple Metrics

Alternatively, we can build a single chart that displays multiple metrics. This method provides a consolidated view, making it easier to compare different KPIs side by side. With just a few simple tricks, we can create an effective Actual vs Target chart for our comparison report and analysis using Excel.

By utilizing these approaches, we can enhance our reporting capabilities and make more informed decisions based on our performance data.

 

In this example, we are using a single chart to represent 7 different KPIs on one Excel chart, and here is the data used for this example:

The first column lists the names of the KPIs we need to report. Next, we use the second column to enter the actual numbers. Finally, we use the third column to enter the target values for each KPI.

Now we’ll create a simple column chart in Excel by selecting all cells in the range shown in the data figure above. Here is what the initial Excel chart will look like:

Next, we can select any of the target columns and change the chart type for the target values from a column chart to an XY (Scatter) chart type.

After that, we can double-click any of the markers we see and change the marker style from the default type to a horizontal line.

Next, we can double-click the actual value columns and use the options tab to change the overlap value from 0 to 100, which creates the following chart:

You can download this Excel chart here. We have created the chart, and finally, we can make some quick visual changes like formatting, colors, and size to match our reporting needs.

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