In Excel: select the data and choose Insert ▸ Combo ▸ Create Custom Combo Chart, then set a chart type per series and tick Secondary Axis where the units differ.
On this page7
Select the category column and every value column including headers.
Insert ▸ Charts ▸ Combo ▸ Create Custom Combo Chart.
Set the chart type for each series in the list at the bottom of the dialog.
Tick Secondary Axis for any series whose unit or magnitude differs from the primary one.
Title both axes so the reader knows which scale each series belongs to, then reorder series with Select Data ▸ Move Up if the line hides behind the columns.
What this does
A combo chart draws several series in one plot area with a different chart type each — typically columns for the volume measure and a line for a rate or percentage. The Custom Combination dialog lists every series with a type dropdown and a Secondary Axis checkbox, which is where the two-scale problem is actually solved. The same idea underpins a lot of everyday Excel work, so the few minutes spent getting it right here pay back across every sheet you build afterwards. Treat it as a pattern, not a one-off, and it stops being something you look up and starts being something you reach for. Treat “create a combo chart in excel” as a small repeatable workflow rather than a one-off click you hope to remember next time. Use a small test block before the live file, so any surprise in the affected chart shows up while it is still harmless. When this is a ribbon command, the selection matters more than the button: confirm the range, apply the command, then spot-check the output before saving. That turns a visual that makes the number obvious at a glance into a method you can reuse, explain, and defend when the workbook leaves your screen.
A worked example
Monthly revenue in euros and gross margin in percent share the same months. Insert ▸ Combo ▸ Create Custom Combo Chart: revenue as Clustered Column on the primary axis, margin as Line with Markers with Secondary Axis ticked. Without that tick the margin line lies flat on the floor of a chart scaled to hundreds of thousands. The volume-and-rate pair is the most common chart request in any business review, and it is wrong every time the second scale is left implicit. If this is something you do often, add the command to the Quick Access Toolbar (right-click it on the ribbon and choose Add to Quick Access Toolbar) or learn its shortcut, so next time it is one click instead of a hunt through the menus.
In Google Sheets
This is a command rather than a formula, so there is no syntax to carry over. Google Sheets arranges its commands in menus across the top instead of a ribbon, names some of them differently and does not have every Excel command — look for the equivalent in the Sheets menus or its help before assuming the steps match. The aim was to get you unstuck fast and leave you a little more capable than a copy-paste would. The answer is at the top and the detail above shows why it holds — so the next time a colleague asks, you can answer without reaching for search. Treat “create a combo chart in excel” as a routine rather than a one-off. Once you know which setting or command controls it, the same few steps handle every workbook where it comes up in Excel, and you can explain them to a colleague in a sentence.
Common mistakes
- Using a secondary axis without labelling it, which lets a reader infer a relationship the scales invented.
- Choosing scales that make two unrelated series cross dramatically — the crossing point is an artefact of the axis maxima.
- Leaving a line series drawn behind the columns; move it up the series order so it stays visible.
- Combining a stacked column with a line and reading the line against the stack total, which it is not aligned to.
Frequently asked questions
How do I add a line to a bar chart?
Right-click the chart ▸ Change Chart Type ▸ Combo, then set the series you want as Line and tick Secondary Axis if its scale differs.
Where is Combo on a Mac?
Chart Design ▸ Change Chart Type ▸ Combo. The Insert tab also offers it once a chart exists.
Can I use three different chart types?
Yes. Each series has its own dropdown in the Custom Combination dialog, though more than two types is rarely readable.
Why is my percentage line flat?
It shares the primary axis with a much larger series. Tick Secondary Axis for that series.
Other ways people ask this
This is also commonly searched as “how to make a combo chart in excel”, “how to make combo chart in excel” and “how to create combo chart in excel”. They describe the identical operation, so you are in the right place no matter how you phrased it.
Why do people search for this in so many different ways?
Because the same task has many names. “how to make a combo chart in excel”, “how to make combo chart in excel”, “how to create combo chart in excel” all point at the one operation explained on this page, which is why they all lead here.