Create XY (Scatter) Charts in Excel 97 and 2000 
When your data has pairs or grouped sets of values, you can display it effectively in the xy (scatter) chart type. This chart type is commonly used for displaying scientific and engineering data. A scatter chart has two value axes instead of one value axis and one category axis like most chart types. Another difference is that data can be shown in uneven intervals, or clusters.
In the example shown here, a scatter chart displays the particulate levels in daily rainfall. The data for daily rainfall is shown as x values (data used as x values should always be in the first row or column) while the data for particulate is shown as y values (data for y values should always be placed in the row or column following the x values).
What's the Difference Between a Line Chart and a Scatter Chart?
Line charts and scatter charts look very similar. However, the line chart displays categories of data evenly along the x axis, with values of data along the y axis. When data should be displayed in uneven clusters, the scatter chart works better. Notice that the first data point to appear in the example chart above (a particulate y value of 137 and a daily rainfall x value of 1.9) comes from row 9 of the example worksheet columns. In a line chart, the values 137 and 1.9 would be separate data points, each of which would be plotted on the 8th category of the x axis.
If you want your scatter chart to display connecting lines between points, you can select one of the built-in xy (scatter) chart subtypes with lines from the Chart Type dialog box (Chart menu).
Create a Scatter Chart
- Arrange your data so that the data you want to use as x values is in the first row or column of your data set, and y values are located in adjacent rows or columns.
- Select the range of x and y values.
- Click Chart on the Insert menu.
- In the first step of the Chart Wizard, select XY (Scatter) in the Chart type list.
- Click a chart sub-type in the Chart sub-type list. For example, if you want your chart to have data points connected with smoothed lines, click the second chart sub-type in the list.
- Continue with steps 2 through 4 of the Chart Wizard. If you need help on any of the steps, click the Help button on the lower-left side of the dialog box.
What If My Data Has Three Y Values?
Use the Chart Wizard to create a bubble chart, which is similar to a scatter chart, except that each data point is a "bubble," the size of which is determined by one of the three data series - as in the following example, where market share percentage for each company is displayed by the size of each bubble:
More Information
For more information, type examples of chart types in the Office Assistant or on the Answer Wizard tab in the Excel Help window, and then click Search. Click the Help topic Examples of chart types to see examples of all chart types in Excel, including xy (scatter).
