How to Create a Double Bar Graph in Google Sheets

What is a Double Bar Graph?

A double bar graph, also called double bar chart, is a type of bar graph that displays two sets of data as pairs of bars.

When to use a Double Bar Graph?

A double bar graph is used to compare two datasets when they have the same set of items or categories. Here are some examples:

1. Comparing the total sales of your branches for two consecutive years
2. Comparing the values of KPIs you calculate for two different marketing channels

How to create a Double Bar Graph in Google Sheets

Step 1: Select the range of data that you want to visualize.

Step 2: Click Insert on the main menu 

Step 3: Click Chart.

Step 4: Find the Chart editor, located on the right side of the screen.

The selected chart type is not a double bar graph by default, so we have to change the chart type.

Step 5: Click the drop-down box below the Chart type. 

Step 6: Click the option for Bar chart from the dropdown list that appears. 

Voila!  We now have a bar chart. To add a title to the chart, go to the Customize tab in the Chart editor, then click Chart axis & titles. Make sure that the drop-down box displays the option Chart title. On the text box below the drop-down box, type the title of the chart. 

Here are some more options for modifying the title of the chart: 

• To change the font of the title, click the drop-down box below the label Title font. There are 12 fonts to choose from such as Arial, Georgia, and Verdana. 
• To change the size of the title, click the drop-down box below the label Title font size. You can select from a range from 10 to 36. You can specify a value beyond the given options. You can also choose Auto to let Google Sheets adjust the font size fit for the given chart.
• To center align the title, go to Title format and click the Alignment option. Then click the Center option. 

We now have the following chart!

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Alternatives to a Double Bar Graph

While the double bar chart is extremely useful in certain circumstances, other charts can be better for showcasing specific types of data. Some alternatives to a double bar graph are:

Grouped bar chart - for comparing multiple datasets

Column charts - if you want the bars vertically aligned

If you don’t know how best to display your data, check out our article on all of the chart types in Google Sheets and when to use them for the best results.