How to Make Graphs the Same Size in Excel

Nothing ruins a professional-looking Excel dashboard faster than a set of mismatched, disorganized charts. Manually dragging corners to get graphs the same size is a frustrating guessing game, but there are much better ways to do it. This tutorial will walk you through several easy methods, from simple alignment tools to a powerful macro, to make every chart on your worksheet the exact same size.

Why Consistent Graph Sizes Matter

Before jumping into the “how,” it’s worth taking a moment to understand the “why.” It might seem like a small detail, but consistent chart sizing and alignment have a significant impact on your reports.

Professionalism: Well-aligned, uniformly sized charts instantly make your report look more polished, organized, and credible. First impressions count, and a sloppy dashboard can make stakeholders question the data within it.
Improved Readability: When charts are different sizes, your audience's eyes have to constantly readjust. Uniformity creates a clean, predictable visual path, allowing viewers to focus on understanding the data instead of getting distracted by the layout.
Easier Comparisons: When comparing similar data sets - like sales over time for different regions - it’s critical that the charts are the same size. If one chart is wider or taller than another, it can visually distort the scale and lead to misinterpretation of trends. Same-sized charts provide an accurate, apples-to-apples comparison.
Better Use of Space: Consistently sized charts allow you to create a grid-like structure for your dashboard. This clean alignment helps you pack more information into a single screen without it feeling cluttered or chaotic.

In short, taking a minute to standardize your chart sizes elevates your work from a simple spreadsheet to a professional, easy-to-digest report.

Method 1: The Manual Approach Using the "Size and Properties" Pane

The most direct way to resize a chart in Excel is by manually entering its dimensions. This method is perfect when you have just a few charts and want pixel-perfect precision.

Think of one chart as your "master" chart - the one you'll get to the perfect size first. Once you're happy with its dimensions, you'll apply its size to all the others.

Step-by-step Instructions:

Select your "master" chart: Click once on the chart you want to use as your size template. This will reveal the "Chart Design" and "Format" tabs in the main Excel ribbon.
Find the Dimensions: Click on the Format tab. On the far right side of the ribbon, you will see a "Size" group with "Height" and "Width" boxes.
Note the Height and Width: Write down or remember the numbers in these boxes. Let's say your chart is 3" high and 5" wide. This is your target size.
Select the Next Chart: Click on the next chart you want to resize.
Enter the Dimensions: Go back to the Format tab and, in the "Size" group, type 3" into the "Height" box and 5" into the "Width" box. Hit Enter, and the chart will immediately snap to the exact dimensions you specified.
Repeat for All Other Charts: Continue selecting each chart one by one and entering the same Height and Width values.

Pro Tip: Use the Format Chart Area Pane for Faster Editing

Constantly clicking back to the "Format" tab in the ribbon can be a bit tedious. A faster way is to use the "Format Chart Area" side pane, which stays open as you click between different charts.

To open it, right-click on your chart's outer border and select "Format Chart Area..." from the dropdown menu. Alternatively, you can click the small expand icon in the bottom-right corner of the "Size" group on the ribbon.

Once the pane is open on the right side of your screen, click on the green icon that looks like a bar chart ("Size & Properties"). Now, you can simply click on any chart on your sheet, and this pane will update to show its properties. You can enter the height and width here without ever touching the ribbon menu again.

In this pane, you'll also notice a checkbox for "Lock aspect ratio." If this is checked, changing the height will automatically adjust the width to maintain the current proportions. For creating uniform dashboards, you'll almost always want to uncheck this box so you can set exact, independent Height and Width values.

Method 2: Smart Alignment and Distribution Tools

Getting your charts to be the same size is only half the battle. A truly professional dashboard also has perfect alignment and even spacing. Manually dragging charts around to line them up is nearly impossible, but Excel's Alignment tools make it incredibly simple.

For these tools to work, you must select all the charts you want to align at once.

How to Select Multiple Charts:

Hold down the Ctrl key (or Cmd on a Mac) and click on the border of each chart you want to include in your selection. You'll see a selection box appear around each of them.

Step-by-step Alignment Instructions:

Select all your charts using the Ctrl/Cmd key method described above.
Navigate to the Shape Format (or just "Format") tab that appears in the ribbon.
Locate the "Arrange" group and click the Align dropdown. You will see several options.

Understanding Key Alignment Options:

Align Top: This lines up all selected charts along the top edge of the highest chart. Perfect for creating a clean row of graphs.
Align Bottom: The inverse of Align Top, it lines everything up with the bottom edge of the lowest chart.
Align Left / Align Right: These options work vertically, lining up charts along the leftmost or rightmost edge. Ideal for creating a neat column of visuals.
Distribute Horizontally: This magical tool creates equal space between the left edge of each selected chart. If you have three charts in a row, it moves the middle chart so the gap is perfectly even on both sides.
Distribute Vertically: This does the same thing but for a column of charts, creating equal vertical space between each one.

By a combination of resizing and then using these alignment tools, you can create a perfectly symmetrical, grid-based dashboard in under a minute.

Method 3: Go Faster with "Copy and Paste Special"

If you have several charts and want them to have the exact same size and appearance (colors, fonts, borders, etc.), the "Paste Special" feature is your best friend. It’s significantly faster than resizing each chart manually.

Step-by-step Instructions:

Perfect your "master" chart: Get one chart sized, styled, and formatted exactly how you want it.
Copy the chart: Select your master chart and press "Ctrl + C" (or "Cmd + C" on Mac) to copy it.
Select the target chart: Click on the chart that you want to reformat.
Use Paste Special: Don’t just paste! Instead, navigate to the Home tab on the ribbon. Click the small arrow under the "Paste" button to open the dropdown menu, and select "Paste Special..."
A dialog box will appear. Select the Formats option and click OK.

Excel will instantly apply the size, colors, fonts, and chart type from your master chart to the target chart, while keeping the target chart's original data intact. Repeat this for any other charts you want to standardize.

Note: Be mindful that this method copies all formatting. If you want the charts to have different color schemes but be the same size, you're better off using Method 1.

Method 4: The VBA Macro for Ultimate Efficiency

If you're creating a large report with dozens of charts, resizing them one by one is out of the question. For this level of work, a simple Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) macro can resize every single chart on your worksheet in a single click.

Don't worry if you've never used VBA before. You just need to copy and paste the code below directly into Excel's editor.

Heads Up: This is a macro, so it's a good idea to save a copy of your workbook before running it, just in case.

Step-by-step Instructions:

Open the VBA Editor: Press Alt + F11 on your keyboard (or "Fn + Alt + F11" on some laptops). This will open the VBA editor window.
Insert a new Module: In the VBA editor's menu bar, click Insert > Module. A blank white code pane will appear.
Copy and Paste the Code: Copy the code below and paste it into the empty module pane.

Customize the Size (Optional): The code is currently set to resize charts to 3 inches tall (216 points) and 5 inches wide (360 points). You can change the numbers for myChartHeight and myChartWidth to whatever you need.
Run the Macro: While your cursor is still in the code, simply press the F5 key on your keyboard or click the green "Play" button in the VBA editor's toolbar. Wait a moment, and you should see a confirmation pop-up. That's it!

Every chart on your active sheet is now the exact same size. This macro is a huge time-saver for anyone who builds complex, chart-heavy reports on a regular basis.

Final Thoughts

Mastering chart sizing and alignment is a simple skill that transforms your Excel reports from cluttered spreadsheets into clean, professional dashboards. Whether you prefer the precision of manual adjustments, the speed of Paste Special, or the raw power of a VBA macro, there's always an efficient way to achieve a polished result.

Automating these small, repetitive tasks gives you back time to focus on what matters: the actual insights hidden in your data. At Graphed, we recognize that while Excel is powerful, a lot of time is still spent on manual report building - downloading CSVs, cleaning data, and resizing charts every single week. We created a tool that helps you connect your data sources (like Google Analytics, Shopify, or Facebook Ads) in one click. From there, you just describe the dashboard you need in plain English - like "create a line chart of Shopify sales," and it appears, perfectly sized and updated in real-time, no manual formatting required. Get your weekly reporting down from hours to seconds with Graphed.