Categories
Tracking the progress towards a particular strategic objective is one of the significant tasks in any business. Why?
It’s one of the tested and proven ways of increasing commitment towards the achievement of a particular goal. It would help if you had a minimalist and easy-to-interpret chart to track progress.
The expert-recommended chart you can use to keep track of performance is Google Sheets Progress Bar. The visualization design is arguably among the charts that are amazingly easy to interpret. You can use the chart to create compelling data stories for management.
Google Sheets is a popular data visualization choice among professionals and business owners worldwide. However, the Progress Bar Google Sheets is not supported by Google Sheets by default.
In other words, if you’re wondering how to add a Progress Bar in Google Sheets, you have to plot the chart from scratch using many steps.
It turns out you have an option of downloading and installing a particular add-on to access ready-made and visually stunning Progress Bar Charts.
In this blog post, you’ll learn the following:
Before we delve into the blog’s core, let’s define the chart of the moment.
So let’s get to it.
Definition: A Progress Chart in Google Sheets is a graph that displays the progress made toward a particular goal. The visualization design allows you to monitor and prioritize your objectives by providing critical data for strategic decision-making.
The Google Sheets Progress Bar Chart displays filled bars that proportionally indicate how much of the planned activity or goal has been completed. You can use the chart to visualize and keep track of your team’s work after defining your project goals and milestones.
Google Spreadsheet progress bars are important because they provide a clear visual representation of task completion, making data easier to interpret at a glance. They help users track progress efficiently without needing to analyze numbers manually. This boosts productivity, especially in collaborative projects where quick updates are essential.
We can use Google Sheets Sparkline Progress Bar through the following method:
=SPARKLINE(B2, {“chart type”,”bar”; “max”, 100})
A Google Spreadsheet Progress Bar Chart displays insights using Bars with varying lengths.
Take a look at the tabular data below. Can you provide a meaningful story by looking at the table?
| Products | Previous Year | Current Year |
| Hair Shampoo | 500 | 900 |
| Hair Spray | 350 | 500 |
| Hair Color | 400 | 300 |
| Beauty Cream | 600 | 700 |
| Face Cream | 650 | 450 |
| Sunscreen | 700 | 950 |
| Bleaching Cream | 400 | 600 |
| Makeup Palettes | 500 | 350 |
| Lipstick | 600 | 800 |
| Lip Gloss | 700 | 900 |
Now, look at the Google Sheets Progress Bar Chart (below).
You can easily point out the best and worst-performing products in the inventory.
For instance, the worst-performing products are hair color, make-up palettes, and face cream. The red bars represent a decline, while the green ones depict positive growth.
We need to follow these steps for the Google Sheets progress bar with percentage:
Then, in cell C2, enter the following formula to generate a progress bar for the initial task.
=SPARKLINE(B2,{“charttype”,”bar”;”max”,1;”min”,0;”color1″,”green”})
Duplicate this formula across all the remaining cells in column C by copying and pasting it.
Each progress bar in column C visually represents the percentage listed in column B.
You can customize the progress bars to show different colors depending on the completion percentage. For instance, use the formula below to display a green bar for values above 70%, a yellow bar for those above 50%, and a blue bar for anything lower.
=SPARKLINE(B2,{“charttype”,”bar”;”max”,1;”min”,0;”color1″,IF(B2>0.7,”green”,IF(B2>0.5,”yellow”,”blue”))})
The screenshot below demonstrates how this formula is applied in a real example:
Now, the color of the progress bar is determined by the value in column B.
You can also add borders around the cells and adjust the cell size to make the progress bars more visible and easier to read.
To visualize your data using a Progress Bar Chart, you need a tool. The best visualization tool should have the following attributes, namely:
To have a seamless experience in visualizing your data, you need a tool that’s flexible in its functionalities.
The aesthetics of an online charting tool come in handy while choosing the right data visualization tool for your work. Yes, aesthetics doesn’t have any functional value, but it adds spice to your data stories.
A tool that allows you to collaborate with others is very handy, especially in the current pandemic period. It would help if you had a tool that allows you to share and collaborate with others in visualization tasks.
Keep reading because we’ll be recommending the best add-on you should download and install in your spreadsheet app in the next section.
It gets better.
The add-on meets all the attributes we’ve just highlighted above.
As we said, Google Sheets does not support a Progress Bar Graph. This means you have to plot the chart from scratch using different tools.
Here’s the kicker.
We’re not advocating you do away with Google Sheets. You have an option of installing a particular add-on called ChartExpo to access ready-to-use Progress Bar visualizations.
ChartExpo is a tool that goes above and beyond data visualization using a complete set of tools (below):
You can easily create a Progress Bar in Excel and Progress Bar Charts Google Sheets that are simple, easy, and clear to read.
The tool comes with a library of many advanced charts. Did we mention you can easily export charts to make stunning social media reports, sales reports, and goal projections using a wide range of ready-to-go charts?
ChartExpo is for anyone who needs to create data visualizations and visual graphics for a variety of purposes. For example, you can create graphs in Excel and Google Sheets for blogs, reports, proposals, school reports, presentations, print collateral, and more.
But most of all, ChartExpo is for people who need to create beautiful charts, such as a side-by-side bar chart, without design skills.
This highly intuitive tool offers lots of resources to improve your designer’s eye and make the most out of the tools provided in the editor.
Do you need great-looking charts in Google Sheets on its own or as a part of a dashboard or inside a report, or proposal?
Look no further.
You have two options for accessing the Progress Bar Graphs in Google Sheets.
How to make a Progress Bar in Google Sheets should never be a time-consuming affair for you. Use ChartExpo to enjoy a seamless experience.
A title is one of the additional key pieces of information you need to help your target audience (or readers) understand the context of your data story or report.
So, adding a title to any of your Google spreadsheet charts is highly recommended.
To add a title to your Google Sheets Progress Bar chart, follow the easy steps below:
Progress bar templates in Google Sheets offer an instant visual cue, making it easier to monitor task completion without analyzing raw numbers.
These templates are highly flexible—you can tailor the colors, lengths, and conditions to match your project’s specific needs or visual preferences.
Since Google Sheets is cloud-based, teams can access and update progress in real time, improving transparency and coordination across team members.
Progress bars can be created using basic formulas and conditional formatting, eliminating the need for external tools or advanced technical skills.
There are two major types of Progress Bar Charts, namely:
After defining your project goals and milestones, you can use both chart variants to visualize and keep track of your team’s work.
More so, the two charts are straightforward to decode.
To make a progress bar in Google Sheets based on a checkbox, use conditional formatting with a formula that checks if the Google Sheets progress bar checkbox is ticked, then fills a cell or range accordingly to visually represent progress.
You’ll agree that keeping track of progress towards a particular strategic objective is one of the significant tasks you undertake.
To succeed in the task (above), you need a minimalist and easy-to-interpret chart. One powerful method you should consider is learning how to insert progress bar in Google Sheets. The expert-recommended visualization design you can use to keep track of performance is the Google Sheets Progress Bar.
This visualization design is arguably among the charts that are amazingly easy to interpret.
Google Sheets should not be your go-to visualization tool if you intend to access ready-made and easy-to-read progress Bar Graphs. This is because the spreadsheet application does not support Progress Bar Graphs.
We recommend you install a particular add-on called ChartExpo in your Google Sheets to access ready-to-use, insightful, and visually appealing Progress Bar Charts.
ChartExpo comes loaded with easy-to-interpret and visually stunning Progress Charts you can use for data stories.
You don’t need programming or coding skills to visualize your data using this tool. Furthermore, you can easily export your charts in the world’s most recognized formats, namely JPEG and PNG.
How to make a Progress Bar in Google Sheets should never throw a curveball to you.
Sign up for a 7-day free trial today to access a complete list of ready-made, insightful, and visually appealing Progress Bar Charts.
How much did you enjoy this article?
Google Workspace Marketplace provides apps to enhance Gmail, Drive, and Docs. Learn about this tool and how to improve data visualization and analysis.
Google Sheets CRM templates help businesses track contacts, sales, and customer data. Learn their benefits, setup steps, and expert tips to boost efficiency.
A Google Sheets Histogram makes data visualization simple by revealing patterns. Learn how to create, customize, and optimize histograms for better insight.
