You cannot create a power trendline if your data contains zero or negative values. Notice that the R-squared value is 0.979, which is a good fit of the line to the data.Ī power trendline is a curved line that is used with data sets that compare measurements that increase at a specific rate - for example, the acceleration of a race car at 1-second intervals. The following example shows an Order 2 polynomial trendline (one hill) to illustrate the relationship between driving speed and fuel consumption. Order 4 generally has up to three hills or valleys.
Order 3 generally has one or two hills or valleys. An Order 2 polynomial trendline generally has only one hill or valley. The order of the polynomial can be determined by the number of fluctuations in the data or by how many bends (hills and valleys) appear in the curve. It is useful, for example, for analyzing gains and losses over a large data set. Note that the R-squared value is 0.933, which is a relatively good fit of the line to the data.Ī polynomial trendline is a curved line that is used when data fluctuates. The following example uses a logarithmic trendline to illustrate predicted population growth of animals in a fixed-space area, where population leveled out as space for the animals decreased. A logarithmic trendline can use both negative and positive values. Notice that the R-squared value is 0.979, which is a good fit of the line to the data.Ī logarithmic trendline is a best-fit curved line that is used when the rate of change in the data increases or decreases quickly and then levels out. In the following example, a linear trendline illustrates that refrigerator sales have consistently risen over a 13-year period. A linear trendline usually shows that something is increasing or decreasing at a steady rate. Your data is linear if the pattern in its data points resembles a line. Linear trendlinesĪ linear trendline is a best-fit straight line that is used with simple linear data sets. If you want to, you can display this value on your chart. When you fit a trendline to your data, Excel automatically calculates its R-squared value. The type of data that you have determines the type of trendline that you should use.Ī trendline is most accurate when its R-squared value is at or near 1.
When you want to add a trendline to a chart in Microsoft Office Excel, you can choose any one of these six different trend or regression types: linear trendlines, logarithmic trendlines, polynomial trendlines, power trendlines, exponential trendlines, or moving average trendlines.
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If you change a chart or data series so that it can no longer support the associated trendline - for example, by changing the chart type to a 3-D chart or by changing the view of a PivotChart report or associated PivotTable report - the trendline no longer appears on the chart.įor line data without a chart, you can use AutoFill or one of the statistical functions, such as GROWTH() or TREND(), to create data for best-fit linear or exponential lines.Ĭhoosing the right trendline type for your data You can also create a moving average, which smoothes out fluctuations in data and shows the pattern or trend more clearly. For example, the following chart uses a simple linear trendline that is forecasting two quarters ahead to clearly show a trend toward increasing revenue. By using regression analysis, you can extend a trendline in a chart beyond the actual data to predict future values. Such analysis is also named regression analysis. Trendlines are used to graphically display trends in data and to help analyze problems of prediction. Remove a trendline Learn about forecasting and showing trends in charts Specify the point where the trendline crosses the vertical (value) axisĭisplay the trendline equation on the chartĭisplay the R-squared value for a trendline Specify the number of periods to include in a forecast Learn about forecasting and showing trends in charts Note: You cannot add a trendline to data series in a stacked, 3-D, radar, pie, surface, or doughnut chart. Instead, a trendline is used to depict trends in your existing data or forecasts of future data. A trendline is always associated with a data series, but a trendline does not represent the data of that data series. You can add a trendline or moving average to any data series in an unstacked, 2-D, area, bar, column, line, stock, xy (scatter), or bubble chart.