Skip to content
plot.tools

Line graph maker

Show how something changed over time. Paste a table with one row per date and get one line per column.

What this page does

  • One line per series
  • Empty cells drawn as gaps
  • Optional monotone smoothing
  • Axis can start away from zero
  • Labels thinned automatically on long series
Line chart: Average temperature by month. 2 series (Coast and Inland) across 12 categories, from Jan to Dec. Coast: up 9%, from 9.5 (Jan) to 10.4 (Dec). Coast: highest 23.9 (Aug), lowest 9.5 (Jan). Inland: up 33%, from 2.1 (Jan) to 2.8 (Dec). Inland: highest 25.1 (Jul), lowest 2.1 (Jan).Average temperature by monthSample data, °CCoastInland051015202530JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
PNG scale

SVG 1600 × 900 px · PNG 3200 × 1800 px · 16:9

No account and no watermark. The file has the Inter font embedded, named layers and the chart’s alt text, so it looks the same in a slide, a document or a browser. Not every app reads alt text stored in a file, so also paste it into the image’s alt text field.

Alt text: Line chart: Average temperature by month. 2 series (Coast and Inland) across 12 categories, from Jan to Dec. Coast: up 9%, from 9.5 (Jan) to 10.4 (Dec). Coast: highest 23.9 (Aug), lowest 9.5 (Jan). Inland: up 33%, from 2.1 (Jan) to 2.8 (Dec). Inland: highest 25.1 (Jul), lowest 2.1 (Jan).

Your data

First column: labels. Other columns: one series each. The file is read in your browser and is not uploaded.

Table

12 × 2

Label
Remove row

Design

Chart type

Text

Numbers

Colours

Output

Proportion

320 to 4000 px. PNG multiplies it by the scale.

Background
  1. Step 1: Pick a chart typeBar, line, pie, scatter, area or radar. You can switch at any time.
  2. Step 2: Put in your numbersPaste cells from Excel or Google Sheets, load a file, or type in the table.
  3. Step 3: Download the pictureA PNG for slides and documents, or an SVG you can edit.

Start from an example

Click one to load it in the editor, then replace the sample numbers with yours.

Other chart makers

Each page opens the editor on that chart, with a short guide to reading and drawing it well.

One row per date, one column per line. Empty cells stay as gaps instead of dropping to zero, and the graph downloads as SVG or PNG with no account.

How to make a line graph

  1. Put the dates or steps in the first column, in order, one per row.
  2. Put each line’s values in its own column, with the line’s name in the header.
  3. Paste the cells in the Data panel. Each column becomes a line with its own colour.
  4. Decide whether the axis should start at zero, add axis titles, and download.

Order and spacing of the points

The points are placed in the order of the rows, at equal distances. That fits data recorded at regular steps: every month, every week, every version. If your dates are irregular, such as readings on the 1st, the 3rd and the 20th, equal spacing would distort the slope; use the scatter plot instead, with the day number as X, so the horizontal distances are true.

Zero or not zero

A line shows the shape of a change, and the choice of baseline changes how steep it looks. Starting at zero is the safe default and is what readers assume. Leave zero out when the values sit far from it and the variation is the point, and never do it to make a small change look dramatic.

How many lines

Up to four or five lines can be told apart by colour. Beyond that, the chart becomes a tangle: draw the one or two lines that matter in the sequential or categorical palette and consider leaving the rest out, or split the data into several small charts with the same axis.

Smoothing

Straight segments are the honest default: they show exactly where the measurements are. The smooth option joins the same points with a curve that never overshoots them. Use it for slowly changing quantities, and avoid it when each point is a separate count, because the curve suggests values in between.

If the amount under the line matters, see the area chart maker. To compare totals instead of trends, see the bar chart maker.

Why use Plot Tools

What you can check for yourself, without taking our word for it.

No account, no watermark
The download buttons work straight away. The exported file holds your chart, your text and the font, and nothing else.
Your data stays in the browser
Pasted cells and loaded files are parsed and drawn on this page. There is no upload step, and the site’s security policy only allows connections to itself.
The PNG matches the screen
The Inter font is embedded in the SVG before it is rasterised, so the labels in the PNG sit exactly where you saw them.
Decimal comma understood
1.234,56 and 3,5 are read correctly: the separator and the decimal mark are detected from the data, and you can override both.
Defaults a data editor would accept
Round axis marks, solid fills, one colour per series, bars that start at zero, and a square background that can be transparent.
Colour-blind-safe by default
The default palette is Okabe-Ito. A test in the code simulates red-green colour blindness and checks that its colours stay apart.
A link that carries the chart
“Copy link” packs the data and settings into the part of the address after #, which browsers do not send to servers.
Alt text written for you
A description is generated from the data and stored in the SVG and the PNG. Line and area charts also say how each of the first four series ends compared with its start. It is shown under the chart with a button to copy it.

Questions and answers

How do I put several lines on one graph?

Add a column for each line. The first column holds the dates or labels, and every other column is a series with its own colour and legend entry.

What happens to empty cells?

They are drawn as a break in the line. A missing measurement is not a zero, so the line is not pulled down to the axis.

Should a line graph start at zero?

Not always. A line shows change, and for values far from zero, such as a temperature around 37 or an index around 1000, starting at zero flattens the change you want to show. Turn “Start the axis at zero” off in that case, and say so in the subtitle if the audience may assume a zero baseline.

Does smoothing change my data?

It changes only how the points are joined. The smoothing is monotone: between two points the curve never rises above the higher one or falls below the lower one, so it does not invent peaks.

Why are some labels on the X axis missing?

When the labels would overlap, the chart shows every second or third one. All points are still drawn. A wider proportion, such as 16:9, shows more labels.