)
)
I’ve worked with Excel for years, and one thing I know for sure is that it can be a super powerful tool—when used right.
Whether you're managing a project, tracking sales, or keeping tabs on your team’s performance, an Excel dashboard can bring all your data together in one easy-to-understand view. The beauty of an Excel dashboard is its simplicity. Once you know how to set it up, it can help you stay on top of key metrics and make better decisions.
In this post, I walk you through what an Excel dashboard is, how to make one step by step, the best templates to use, and — where Excel falls short — how tools like Teamwork.com can help. We’ll cover best practices for building a clean and organized dashboard, plus a few tips on how to make sure your dashboard stays useful over time. Let’s get into it!
What is an Excel dashboard?
An Excel dashboard is a visual tool used to track, analyze, and display KPIs in a single view using Microsoft Excel. It brings together charts, tables, and key metrics so you can quickly understand what's happening in your business.
Why are Excel dashboards useful?
Excel dashboards are useful because they turn raw data into clear, visual insights. Instead of scanning through spreadsheets, you can see key metrics like project progress, deadlines, or project budget status at a glance. They also help teams track performance, identify issues early and deliver results on time.
5 Excel dashboard best practices
Building a great Excel dashboard is all about making data easy to understand and access. By following these 5 simple tips, you can create a dashboard that’s organized, clear, and useful for your team and project stakeholders.
Keep it simple: Only include key numbers and charts your team needs. Too much information can make the dashboard confusing, so keep it clean and easy to read.
Organize the layout and use the same style: Put the most important information at the top or left side so people see that first. Use the same fonts, colors, and number formats throughout the dashboard to make it look neat and professional.
Make it easy to interact with: Add dropdown menus or filters so users can choose what data they want to see. This helps them find the right information without changing the whole dashboard.
Add clear labels: Every chart, table, and number should have a title. This helps people understand what they’re looking at right away, without guessing.
Regular updates: Make sure everything works and the data is correct. As your project or goals change, keep your dashboard updated so it stays useful.
How to create a dashboard in Excel?
Creating a dashboard in Excel might sound complicated, but I promise it’s easier than it seems. I’ve broken it down into 7 simple steps, so by the end of this, you’ll be able to build your own dashboard with ease.
Step 1: Prepare your data
Start by gathering the data you need. Make sure it’s organized in Excel with clear headers (like “Sales,” “Date,” or “Region”).
If your data isn’t organized, it will be hard to work with later on.
Step 2: Create a new workbook
Open a new Excel workbook and create different sheets for your project:
Data sheet: This is where you’ll keep all the raw data.
Chart Data sheet: Here, you’ll organize the data in a clean format that’s ready for charts.
Dashboard sheet: This is where you’ll create your dashboard, combining everything into one place.
This keeps everything neat and easy to manage.
Step 3: Create charts
Next, turn your data into visuals. Here are a few chart options:
Bar or column charts: These are good for comparing different categories.
Line charts: These show trends over time (like sales over the last year).
Pie charts: Great for showing how parts make up a whole (like market share).
To create a chart, highlight your data, go to the “Insert” tab in Excel, and choose the chart you want.
Don’t forget to give each chart a clear title.
Step 4: Design your dashboard layout
Now, switch to your Dashboard sheet. Here’s where you’ll place your charts and key data:
Put the most important information at the top so it’s easy to find.
Leave space between each chart to keep things clean.
Arrange the charts in a way that makes sense (e.g., sales trends next to sales totals).
The goal is to keep it simple and easy to read.
Step 5: Format
Make sure your dashboard is easy to understand by using the same style throughout:
Use the same font and colors for consistency.
Make sure the numbers are easy to read by adjusting the size or format (for example, using commas for thousands).
Label your charts and tables clearly so everyone knows what they represent.
Step 6: Add interactivity
To make your dashboard more user-friendly, add features like slicers or dropdown menus. These features allow you to filter the data so users can focus on specific information (for example, sales by region or product).
To add a dropdown menu:
Click the cell where you want the dropdown to appear (for example, a cell at the top of your dashboard where users choose a region or product).
Go to the “Data” tab in the ribbon
In the Data tab, find and click the Data validation button. A small window will pop up.
In the window, under the “Allow” dropdown, choose List.
In the box labeled “Source,” type the items you want in the dropdown, separated by commas. Or, if your list is in a range of cells (like A2:A5), just type =A2:A5.
Click OK
Connect it to your dashboard (optional): If you want the dropdown to control what your dashboard shows, you’ll need to use formulas like “Filter”, “XLOOKUP”, or “IF” to update the dashboard based on the dropdown choice.
To add a slicer, click on your chart, go to the “Insert” tab, and choose Slicer.
Step 7: Review and test
Once your dashboard is ready, take a step back and double-check everything:
Make sure the charts show the right data.
Test any interactive features to ensure they work properly.
Update the data regularly so the dashboard stays current.
When everything looks good, save your work!
Excel dashboard templates
If you want to save time and get started quickly, using a free Excel template is a great option. There are many Excel dashboard templates available online that you can easily customize. Below are five templates for different uses like sales, project management, finance, and marketing. Just download them and adjust them to fit your needs.
1. Sales Dashboard Template
)
2. KPI Dashboard Template
)
3. Project Management Dashboard Template
)
4. Financial Dashboard Template
)
5. Marketing Dashboard Template
)
Limitations of Excel dashboards
Performance issues with large data: Excel dashboards can slow down if you're working with a lot of data. The more rows and columns you add, the harder it becomes for Excel to process and display everything quickly. This can make the dashboard hard to use, especially if you need to work with the data in real time. It might take a while to load or refresh, which can be frustrating.
Limited real-time data: Excel doesn’t update data automatically unless you manually refresh it. If your data changes frequently, you’ll have to click “Refresh” each time to update the charts and tables. This is not ideal for dashboards that need to show real-time or live data.
Challenges with collaboration: When many people try to work on the same Excel dashboard at the same time, it can cause problems. Excel doesn’t work well with live updates, so you might face issues if several people are editing or viewing the file at once. This can lead to lost changes or slow loading times. It’s best to avoid multiple people working on it at the same time.
)
Lack of data visualization options: Excel offers a good selection of charts, but it can be basic compared to more advanced dashboard tools. For example, Excel can struggle with complex visualizations like interactive maps or dynamic charts. If you want to create a very detailed or highly interactive dashboard, Excel may not have all the features you need.
Difficult to scale: As your dashboard grows or becomes more complex, it can get harder to manage in Excel. The file can become cluttered and difficult to navigate as you add more data or charts. For large projects or enterprise-level dashboards, other tools might be more efficient and easier to scale.
If you want a simpler way to manage and share dashboards, Teamwork.com makes it easy. Its dashboards give you a live view of your projects, showing key details like task progress, deadlines, and budgets all in one place. You can customize what you see based on your team's needs, whether that's tracking milestones, risks, or overall progress.
Workload dashboards help you avoid burnout by showing how busy each team member is, so you can balance tasks better. If you’re a project manager you can drag and drop tasks, reassign work, and adjust deadlines as needed. This helps make sure the right people are working on the right tasks, so projects stay on track without putting too much pressure on the team.
)
Utilization dashboards show how much of your team’s time is spent on productive or billable work, helping you spot inefficiencies and plan smarter. It helps managers understand who's maxed out, who has time to spare, and who is hitting their resource target.
)
Teamwork.com also includes dashboards for project budgets, profitability, and planned vs. actual performance. These dashboards give you a clear picture of how your project is doing financially, and whether it’s staying on track. For example, the project budget dashboard helps you see if you're overspending, while the profitability dashboard shows how much profit each project is making based on costs and billable hours.
)
There’s also a time tracking dashboard that shows how much time your team spends on tasks—making it easier to bill accurately and plan better in the future.
All these features, along with easy file sharing and real-time collaboration in the Proofs hub, make Teamwork.com a powerful way to keep your projects and dashboards organized in one place and in real time.
See why our clients love Teamwork.com’s dashboards.
“The ability to create custom dashboards has been a real game changer from a leadership perspective. It allows me to put together specific information I need to see at a glance without all the things I don’t need to see. The ability to customize based on roles and needs is a huge value for us as we continue to grow. For example, in a season of business where task load in specific areas was very important, we were able to build out custom dashboards that allowed us to view task loads by specific areas, instead of having to look at specific projects. We were also able to easily create custom dashboards by department to get a glance of how healthy the team was and how projects were doing. This gave us better line-of-sight to availability and what we could sell into.”
Jay Owen, Owner & CEO, Business Builders
)
FAQs about Excel dashboards
Are there dashboard templates in Excel?
Yes, Excel offers built-in dashboard templates that you can customize to your needs. You can find them by going to File > New and searching for “dashboard” in the template search bar. There are also many free and paid templates available online. These can save you time and help you get started quickly.
Is Excel good for dashboards?
Yes, Excel is a helpful tool for making dashboards, especially for small projects. It’s easy to use and has many options for charts, tables, and filters.
But it has some clear limits. Excel slows down with large amounts of data—it doesn’t show live updates unless you refresh it, and it’s not built for real-time teamwork. It can also be tricky to keep things organized if your dashboard becomes too complex or if many people are editing it at the same time.
How to create a dashboard in Excel that updates automatically
To make your Excel dashboard update automatically, follow these steps:
Select your data and press Ctrl + T to create an Excel table. This makes it easier for Excel to track changes like added rows.
Create your charts using the table so they update automatically when your data changes.
If your data comes from another file or the internet, go to the Data tab and click Get data. Choose where the data is coming from (like another Excel file or a web page) and use Power query to link it.
When your source data changes, click Refresh all in the Data tab and your dashboard will show the latest information.
Can ChatGPT create an Excel dashboard?
ChatGPT can’t create an Excel dashboard, but it can guide you step-by-step on how to build one. You can ask for help with formulas, layout, charts, or automation tips. If you describe your data, ChatGPT can even write the formulas or steps you need.
)
)
)
)
)
)
)