How to make a box plot in Excel
A box-and-whisker plot compresses a whole distribution into one shape: median, quartiles, spread and outliers — perfect for comparing groups side by side. Here's the built-in chart, and the one-click alternative.
When a box plot beats a bar chart
Averages hide the story. Box plots show the shape — how spread out, how skewed, and what's abnormal.
Compare groups
Salaries by department, delivery times by courier, scores by cohort — side by side.
Spot outliers
Individual dots flag the values that sit well beyond the normal range.
Show variability
A tall box means inconsistent results; a short box means a tight, reliable process.
How to make one in Excel
Excel 2016 and later have a native Box & Whisker chart — no formulas required.
Arrange your data
Put each group's raw values in its own column with a header. No need to pre-calculate quartiles.
Insert the chart
Select everything, then Insert › Statistic Chart › Box & Whisker.
Choose the quartile method
Right-click the series → Format Data Series. Pick inclusive or exclusive median and tick Show outlier points.
Read the shape
The box is the middle 50% (Q1–Q3), the line is the median, whiskers reach the rest, and dots are outliers.
On Excel 2013 or earlier there's no box-plot type — you fake it with a stacked column chart built on QUARTILE.INC values and error bars. It works, but it's fiddly and breaks the moment your data changes, which is exactly the kind of busywork worth automating.
The faster way — skip the setup
Comparing ten groups, or refreshing weekly, turns the manual route into a chore. DataHub Pro draws it from raw values.
Version-dependent & fiddly
- Native chart only in 2016+
- Quartile workaround on older versions
- Outlier rules set by hand
- Rebuild when the data updates
One click, every version
- Upload raw values — quartiles computed for you
- Outliers flagged with the 1.5×IQR rule
- Compare many groups at once
- Drop straight into a dashboard or report
FAQ
Does Excel have a box plot?
Yes — Excel 2016 and later include a Box & Whisker chart under Insert › Statistic Chart. Older versions need a manual stacked-column workaround using quartile formulas.
What does a box plot show?
It summarises a distribution: the box spans the interquartile range (Q1–Q3), the line inside is the median, whiskers show the wider spread, and separate dots mark outliers.
How do I show outliers?
Right-click the series, open Format Data Series and tick "Show outlier points". Excel marks any value beyond 1.5× the interquartile range as an individual dot.
Keep exploring
More visual analysis you can run on your own data — no sign-up needed to read.
Get the box plot without the version headaches
Upload an Excel or CSV file and DataHub Pro computes the quartiles, draws the boxes and flags outliers for you. Free to try, no card.
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