Introduction
When creating a chart in Excel, the legend may not display correctly. You might encounter a situation where the “Select Data” screen lists 4 series, but the actual graph only displays 3.
In this article, I will first explain the solution to fix a missing Excel legend, and then detail the possible causes.
Solution When Excel Legend is Not Displayed
When this problem actually occurred, I resolved it using the following method.
1. Delete the Legend Once
Click on the legend currently displayed on the chart and press the Delete key to remove it.
2. Re-add the Legend
Go to the “Chart Design” tab -> “Add Chart Element” -> “Legend” -> “Bottom” (or your preferred position).
By performing this operation, the missing legend items should reappear.
Causes for Legend Not Appearing
If the legend is not displayed correctly, the following causes are possible.
1. Data is Blank or Zero
If the series data in the chart is entirely blank or zero, that series might be excluded from the legend.
Workaround:
- Check the source data of the chart to ensure the values for the relevant series are not all blank or zero.
- Check the data range in “Select Data” -> “Edit Series”.
2. Incorrect Data Range
Even if 4 series are registered in the “Select Data” screen, if the X-axis or Y-axis data ranges are different or incorrect, they may not display correctly on the graph.
Workaround:
- Verify that the range for “Series X values” and “Series Y values” is appropriate for each series.
- Check if the data falls outside the range of the current X-axis.
3. Influence of Chart Type
Using different types of charts (such as Combo charts) may cause some series to be excluded from the legend depending on settings.
Workaround:
- Open “Change Chart Type” and verify that all series are set to an appropriate chart type.
4. Data is Hidden
If data is hidden using Excel’s filter function, the legend for that series will also be hidden.
Workaround:
- Check if the source data for the chart is hidden by a filter and clear the filter.
5. Legend Settings were Changed
If you manually delete a specific part of a legend (by clicking a single legend entry and pressing delete), that specific series legend will disappear while others remain.
Workaround:
- Delete the entire legend once and add it again (as described in the solution above).
Summary
If the legend does not appear in Excel, trying the method of deleting and re-adding the legend often solves the problem.
Additionally, consider the following checklist if the issue persists:
- Is the data blank or zero?
- Is the data range set correctly?
- Is the chart type appropriate?
- Are filters applied to the source data?
If you are struggling with Excel legend display issues, please try these methods.
