How to Add Asterisk in Excel Graph

Adding an asterisk to an Excel graph is a standard way to denote statistical significance or call attention to a specific data point. While it seems like a simple task, Excel doesn't offer a direct 'add asterisk' button. This article will guide you through two effective methods: a quick-and-easy approach using text boxes for static reports, and a more robust, dynamic method using helper data for charts that update automatically.

Why Add an Asterisk to Your Excel Graph?

Before jumping into the "how," it's helpful to understand the "why." You'll typically see asterisks and other symbols used on charts in research papers, business reports, and academic presentations for a few key reasons:

• To Show Statistical Significance: This is the most common use case. In data analysis, an asterisk () is often used to show that a result is statistically significant (e.g., p-value < 0.05). For example, if you're comparing the performance of two ad campaigns, you might place an asterisk above the better-performing campaign's bar to indicate that its success wasn't due to random chance. Sometimes you'll see multiple asterisks (* or *** ) to represent even higher levels of significance (e.g., p < 0.01 or p < 0.001).
• To Highlight Key Data Points: You can use an asterisk to draw the viewer's eye to a particularly important data point, like a record sales month, an unexpected outlier that requires further investigation, or the launch of a new product feature.
• As a Footnote Marker: An asterisk can connect a data point to a note or a clarification in the chart's legend or footer. For example, "*Data for this month is incomplete."

Regardless of your reason, adding these symbols professionally is what separates a clear, insightful chart from a confusing one.

Method 1: The Quick & Easy Way Using a Text Box

This is the fastest method and it's perfect for one-off charts, presentations, or static reports where the underlying data is unlikely to change. It involves simply placing a text box directly onto your graph.

Step 1: Create Your Chart

First, create your chart as you normally would. For this example, let's use a simple column chart showing website conversions for three different landing page designs.

Step 2: Insert a Text Box

With your chart selected, navigate to the Insert tab on the Ribbon. Towards the right, find the Text group and click on Text Box. Your cursor will change, allowing you to click and drag to draw a text box anywhere on your spreadsheet.

Step 3: Add Your Asterisk

Once you've drawn the text box, type your asterisk (*) or other desired symbol inside it. You can resize the box and format the text (font, size, color) just like any other text in Excel.

Step 4: Position and Format the Text Box

Drag the text box and place it directly above the data bar you want to highlight. To make it look clean and integrated, you need to remove the box's default border and background fill.

• Select the text box.
• Go to the Shape Format tab that appears on the Ribbon.
• Click on Shape Fill and select No Fill.
• Click on Shape Outline and select No Outline.

Your asterisk will now appear to be floating neatly above the column.

Pros of This Method

• Extremely fast: It takes just a few seconds to add an asterisk.
• No formulas needed: It's a non-technical approach that anyone can use.
• Great for static reports: It's perfect if you plan to copy and paste the chart into a PowerPoint presentation or a Word document.

Cons of This Method

• It isn't dynamic: This is the biggest drawback. If you update your source data, the height of your chart columns will change, but the text box will stay put. You'll have to manually reposition it every time the data updates.
• Tedious for multiple markers: If you need to add asterisks to many different bars, creating, formatting, and placing each text box can become time-consuming.

Method 2: The Dynamic & Scalable Way Using a Helper Series

If your data is likely to change or you need a scalable solution for complex charts, this is the superior method. It takes a few more steps to set up, but the result is a dynamic asterisk that automatically moves with its corresponding data point. The trick is to create an invisible scatter plot that sits on top of your main chart, which will hold your asterisks.

Step 1: Set Up Your Data and a Helper Column

Start with your data in a table. In addition to your categories and values, you'll need to add a "helper column." This column will control the vertical (Y-axis) position of each asterisk. Let's call it 'Asterisk_Y_Position'.

You want the asterisk to appear slightly above its corresponding bar. So, the formula for this column will check for a specific condition. If the condition is met, it will calculate a value slightly higher than the bar's value, if not, it will return an error that Excel knows not to plot.

For example, let's say we want to add an asterisk to any month where sales (in column B) were over 9,000. Our formula in the helper column would be:

=IF(B2>9000, B2 + 500, NA())

Let's break that down:

• IF(B2>9000, ...): This checks if the sales value in B2 is greater than 9,000.
• B2 + 500: If the condition is true, this sets the Y-position for our asterisk. It takes the original data value (B2) and adds an offset (500) so the asterisk isn't sitting directly on the bar. You can adjust this '500' offset to move the asterisk higher or lower.
• NA(): This is the most important part. If the condition is false, the formula returns #N/A. This tells Excel not to plot a point for that category at all, which is exactly what we want.

Step 2: Create a Second Helper Column for the Symbol

While we could plot a marker, it’s much cleaner to use a data label. Add a second helper column named 'Asterisk_Symbol'. This column will contain the actual asterisk character.

The formula is similar to the first one:

=IF(C2>0, "*", "")

This formula checks if our 'Asterisk_Y_Position' column contains a number (is greater than 0). If it does, it outputs an "*", otherwise, it remains blank.

Step 3: Create The Chart and Add the Helper Series

Create a column chart using only your original data (e.g., Month and Sales). Ignore the helper columns for now.

Next, we will add the helper data as a new series:

1. Right-click anywhere on the chart and choose Select Data.
2. In the dialog box, under 'Legend Entries (Series)', click Add.
3. For the Series name, you can type something like "Significance".
4. For Series values, select the data in your 'Asterisk_Y_Position' helper column.
5. Click OK. You'll see another set of brightly colored bars appear on your chart for the #N/A values. Don't worry, we'll fix that next.

Step 4: Change the New Series to a Scatter Plot

Now, we'll transform that new bar series into an invisible series of points.

1. Right-click on the chart and choose Change Chart Type.
2. In the 'All Charts' tab, go down to the Combo type.
3. You'll see your two data series listed. Keep your original 'Sales' series as a Clustered Column.
4. For your new 'Significance' series, change the chart type from Clustered Column to Scatter in the dropdown menu.
5. Important: Make sure the 'Secondary Axis' box for this new series is unchecked.
6. Click OK. You should now see dots floating above the correct columns.

Step 5: Replace The Markers With Asterisks

The last step is to replace those scatter plot dots with the actual asterisk symbol from our second helper column.

1. Click on one of the new scatter plot dots to select the entire series.
2. Go to Chart Design > Add Chart Element > Data Labels > More Data Label Options.... This will open the 'Format Data Labels' pane.
3. Under 'Label Options', check the box for Value From Cells.
4. A small window will pop up asking for the 'Data Label Range'. Select the data in your 'Asterisk_Symbol' helper column and click OK.
5. Now, uncheck the 'Y Value' and 'Show Leader Lines' boxes to clean up the labels. All you should see are your asterisks.
6. Finally, to make the original scatter dots invisible, click on one to select them and go to the Format Data Series pane. Under 'Marker', select 'Marker Options', and choose None.

You now have a dynamic chart where the asterisks will automatically adjust their position whenever you update your source data.

Final Thoughts

You now have two excellent methods for adding an asterisk to your Excel charts. The text box approach is perfect for quick, static visuals, while the dynamic helper series method gives you a professional, robust solution for reports that need to be updated. Choosing the right one depends on how frequently your data changes and the level of precision you need.

Manually creating complex charts and reports like this in Excel can be a serious time-sink, especially when you're pulling data from different sales and marketing platforms. At Graphed, we automate the entire reporting process. You can connect sources like Google Analytics, Shopify, and your CRM in seconds, then create real-time, shareable dashboards just by describing what you want to see in plain English. This eliminates the manual drudgery of data wrangling, so you can spend less time building charts and more time acting on the insights they provide.