How to Save Excel Graph as PDF

Saving your beautifully crafted Excel chart as a PDF is a simple way to create a clean, shareable, and printer-friendly version of your data visualization. This process freezes your chart in time, making it perfect for reports, presentations, or attachments where you don't want the recipient to edit the underlying data. This tutorial will walk you through several easy methods for converting your Excel charts into high-quality PDF files.

Method 1: Use the "Save As" Feature

The most direct way to save a single chart as a PDF is by using Excel's built-in "Save As" function. This method is quick, efficient, and isolates just the chart you need.

The key to making this work is to first select the chart. If you don't click on the chart before saving, Excel will try to save the entire worksheet.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

• Step 1: Select Your Chart. Click once on the chart you wish to save. You'll know it's selected when you see a border appear around it with resizing handles.
• Step 2: Open the Save As Dialog. Navigate to File in the top-left corner, and then click on Save As. Choose where you want to save your file (e.g., This PC, Browse).
• Step 3: Choose PDF as a File Type. In the "Save As" window, click the dropdown menu next to "Save as type" and select PDF (*.pdf).
• Step 4: Specify "Selected chart". This is the most important step. Before you save, click the Options... button. A new window will pop up. Under the "Publish what" section, select the radio button for Selected chart.
• Step 5: Finalize and Save. Click OK to close the options window. You can also review the "Optimize for" settings, "Standard" is best for high-quality printing, while "Minimum size" is better for emailing. Click Save to create your PDF.

Your chart will now be saved as a standalone, perfectly cropped PDF file in the location you selected. This is the ideal method when you only need to export one graph.

Method 2: Use "Print to PDF" for Better Previews

The "Print to PDF" feature is another excellent option that gives you more control over the final output, including orientation and margins. It uses a virtual printer driver built into Windows and macOS to create a PDF file instead of a physical copy. This is especially useful because it provides a real-time print preview, so you know exactly what your PDF will look like.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

• Step 1: Select the Chart. Just like the first method, start by clicking on the chart to select it.
• Step 2: Open the Print Menu. Go to File > Print, or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + P (Windows) or Cmd + P (Mac).
• Step 3: Choose the PDF Printer. In the "Printer" dropdown menu, select Microsoft Print to PDF (Windows) or a similar PDF option that might be available on your system (like Save as PDF on Mac).
• Step 4: Check Print Settings. Look under the "Settings" section. The top dropdown menu should automatically say Print Selected Chart. If it says "Print Active Sheets" or something else, it means your chart isn't selected correctly. Go back to your worksheet and make sure the chart is selected before opening the print menu again.
• Step 5: Adjust the Layout. This is where the preview comes in handy. You can use the options for Portrait Orientation or Landscape Orientation to see which layout best fits your chart. You can also adjust Margins if needed. The preview on the right will update with every change you make.
• Step 6: "Print" Your File. Click the Print button. Since you selected a PDF printer, a "Save Print Output As" dialog box will appear. Give your file a name, choose a destination, and click Save.

This method is fantastic for non-standard chart sizes or when you need to be certain about the page layout before you commit to saving.

Method 3: Save Multiple Charts to a Single PDF

What if you have several charts, maybe on different worksheets, that you want to combine into a single PDF report? While Excel doesn't have a direct "save all charts" button, there's a professional and easy way to organize them first.

Create a Dashboard or Report Worksheet

The best practice is to create a dedicated worksheet that will act as a dashboard for all the charts you want to include in your PDF.

1. Create a New Worksheet. Start by adding a new, blank worksheet to your Excel workbook. It's helpful to name it something like "Report" or "Dashboard."
2. Copy and Paste Charts. Go to the worksheet containing your first chart. Click on the chart to select it, then copy it by pressing Ctrl + C (Windows) or Cmd + C (Mac). Navigate back to your new "Report" sheet and paste it with Ctrl + V (or Cmd + V).
3. Repeat for All Charts. Go through your workbook and copy-paste all the charts you need onto this single "Report" worksheet.
4. Arrange Your Charts. Once all the charts are on one sheet, you can click and drag them into the desired layout. Resize them to fit neatly on one or more pages. You can use the View > Page Layout option in Excel to see how the charts will break across pages and adjust accordingly.
5. Save the Sheet as a PDF. Now, you can use either Method 1 or Method 2.

This approach gives you complete control over the final presentation and ensures your PDF looks like a polished, intentional report rather than a random collection of graphs.

Method 4: Copy Charts to Word or PowerPoint Before Saving

Often, your Excel chart is just one component of a larger document, like a Word report or a PowerPoint presentation. In these cases, it's best to assemble everything in the final application first.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

• Copy the Chart in Excel. Right-click on the border of your chart and select Copy.
• Open Word or PowerPoint. Go to the document or slide where you want the chart to appear.
• Paste the Chart. You can use Ctrl + V, but right-clicking and looking at the Paste Options is more powerful. You typically have a few choices:
• Arrange and Save as PDF. Add any other text, images, or slides you need. Once your report or presentation is complete, use that application's save feature: File > Save As > Browse, then select PDF from the "Save as type" dropdown.

Tips for High-Quality PDF Exports

To make sure your charts look sharp and professional in their final PDF form, keep these tips in mind.

• Finalize Formatting First. Double-check everything in Excel before you export. Make sure your chart titles, axis labels, legend, data labels, and colors are exactly as you want them. The PDF will be a snapshot of your work.
• Understand Vector Quality. When you save directly from Excel to PDF using the methods above, Excel creates a vector-based image. This is fantastic because vector graphics are made of lines and shapes, not pixels. You can zoom in on them indefinitely, and they will never look blurry or pixelated. A screenshot, on the other hand, creates a pixel-based image that can lose quality when resized.
• Choose Standard Quality for Printing. When using the "Save As" method, you often have the option to optimize for "Standard" or "Minimum size." If physical printing or high-resolution displays are a possibility, always choose "Standard" to preserve the best possible quality.
• Use Page Layout View. Before exporting a full sheet of charts, switch Excel's view by clicking on View > Page Layout. This mode shows you exactly where the page breaks are and how your content will fit on an A4 or Letter-sized page, allowing you to avoid awkward chart placements in your final PDF.

Final Thoughts

Exporting charts from Excel to PDF is a valuable skill for anyone who needs to share data with colleagues, clients, or stakeholders. Whether you're saving a single chart with "Save As," using "Print to PDF" for fine-tuning the layout, or compiling multiple charts into a larger report, the process is straightforward once you know the steps.

This manual exporting is great for static, one-off reports, but we found it quickly became repetitive for our weekly and monthly reporting needs. To automate this process, we use Graphed to connect our data sources, like Google Analytics and our CRM, and create live dashboards. It lets our entire team get real-time insights and share consistent, up-to-date reports without ever having to manually export another chart again.