How to create a gantt chart in Excel

Want to learn how to build a gantt chart from scratch? Follow along with
the instructions below on how to create a gantt chart in Excel.

Please note that we performed the following steps in Excel 2016, but the
basic workflow should be the same in any version of Excel with minor
changes.

1. Prepare the Excel worksheet for your gantt chart

2. Insert a stacked bar chart

3. Format the gantt chart and its data

4. Change the colors of your task bars

1. Prepare the Excel worksheet for your gantt chart

Create columns for Task Name, Start Date, End Date, and Duration, and
fill those cells with information from your project.

Then, format the columns as the following:

1. Task Name column = text

2. Start Date and End Date = formatted as a date

3. Duration column = number

TIP: It’s best to have the Duration field calculate the appropriate duration

of the task based on the start and end dates. This is a simple formula. In
this case, it’s =D2-C2. If you started in different cells in your worksheet,
you’ll need to adjust this formula accordingly.
Place your mouse on the right corner of E2 until you see a black + sign
and double-click or drag your mouse down to paste the formula in the
remaining cells in column E.

2. Insert a ‘Stacked Bar Chart’ from the Insert menu

Insert the chart anywhere in the worksheet, then right-click and

choose Select Data.
Click the plus under the Legend entries section to add the first data set.
Name it "Start Date," and then click on the Y values field. Now select the
data in the Start Date column.
Add a second entry for “Duration,” and select the Duration column.

Click the Select Data Source button in the Horizontal Axis Labels field,

then select the entire Task column.
3. Format the gantt chart and its data

The first thing you may notice is that the dates in the horizontal axis
aren't actually dated. Our gantt chart also covers much more time than
we need. Let’s get rid of all that extra time first.
The first task in the project starts on 7/25/16, so there’s no need for our
project to show anything before then. Copy 7/25/16 into a cell, and
format that cell as a number rather than a date. Excel stores dates as
numbers, and you can see that 7/25/16 translates to 42576.00.
Now highlight the horizontal axis, right-click, and select Format Axis.
Under Bounds, there are fields for Minimum and Maximum. These are
the first and last “dates” in the chart. If we change the minimum value to
42576.00 and hit enter, all that extra time will disappear from the
beginning of our chart.
To make the correct dates, go down to the Number section, and change
the category from Number to Date. Now the horizontal axis will show us
readable dates.
Highlight the vertical axis, right-click, and choose Format Axis to put the
tasks in the right order. Tick the Categories in reverse order checkbox.
This also moves the date axis to the top of the chart where it’s a little
more useful for us.
Click on one of the blue bars to select all of them. Then go over to the
paint bucket, expand the Fill section, and select No fill to remove the
blue bars that precede our task start dates.
4. Change the colors of the task bars in your gantt chart
(Optional)

Click on a single bar twice. Don’t double-click it—click it once to highlight

all the bars in that color, then click it again to highlight a single bar. Go
over to the paint bucket, and choose the color you want from the color fill
options. Repeat this process for the rest of the bars in your newly made
gantt chart to change their colors.

Congratulations! You’ve created your very own gantt chart in Excel. That
was probably a few more steps than you bargained for. Especially if you
have to do that every time you need to create a gantt chart for a new
project. That’s where TeamGantt comes in.
Want an easier way to build gantt
charts?
A better, faster, and more collaborative way to build a gantt
chart with TeamGantt

Creating gantt charts that are simple, beautiful, and super-easy to

manage and update is exactly what TeamGantt was designed from the
ground up to do.

Gantt chart comparison: Excel vs. TeamGantt

Forget having to keep track of multiple Excel gantt chart files for each
project and wasting time making sure all your charts are presentation-
ready. TeamGantt makes it easy—and dare we say FUN—to create and
manage your projects with shareable online gantt charts.

Here’s a quick peek at how you can save time and headaches managing
projects with TeamGantt compared to Excel:
How to create a gantt chart in TeamGantt

Ready to get started? Follow these easy steps to set up your first project
in TeamGantt:

1. Go to teamgantt.com/signup to sign up for your free account to get

started.

2. Once you log in, go to My Projects in the sidebar, and click + New
Project, then Create New Project.

3. Give your project a name, and choose a template to get you started if
you want. Choose the days of the week you want to be able to schedule
work in your project, and click Create New Project.
4. Your project is created, and you’re ready to start adding your tasks!
5. Once you’ve added your tasks to the task list, just click and drag each
taskbar to set the dates and duration.

6. If you have tasks that can’t begin until another task is complete, you
can add a dependency to make sure those tasks are always done in the
proper order. Simply click the gray dot to the right of the first task, and
drag the dependency to the dependent task.
You’re all done! Congratulations on creating your first project in
TeamGantt!

Get started with TeamGantt today

You can create a beautiful project plan in just minutes with TeamGantt.
And because everything happens online, it's easy to track project
progress and coll