What an x y graph shows
An x y graph has two number lines: x runs across and y runs up. Every row of your table is one point. Its x value sets how far right the point sits, and its y value sets how high. The sample graph plots 12 pairs, from (1, 2) up to (12, 14).
Put the value you choose or control on x, and the value you measure on y. Minutes of heating go on x and temperature on y. Ad spend goes on x and signups on y.
Is an xy graph the same as a scatter plot?
Yes. An x y graph, an xy graph and a scatter plot all place points by two numbers, so an xy graph maker and a scatter plot maker are the same kind of tool. This page is the plain version of the Chartjuice scatter plot maker: the same designer, opened on a bare two-column table with no trend line. Go there for correlation and colored groups, or to the bubble chart maker to size each point by a third number.
Points only, or points joined by a line?
This graph draws points only. The designer's Scatter chart has no setting that joins the points, so you can't turn it into a connect-the-dots line here.
For joined points, use the line graph maker. It draws a line through your rows in order. It treats the x column as labels and spaces them evenly, which is right when x goes up in equal steps (1, 2, 3 or Jan, Feb, Mar). If your x values are uneven, such as 1, 2 and 10, the line graph still spaces them evenly, and only the x y graph puts each point where its number says.
Graph an equation from a table of values
To graph an equation, build a table of values and plot the pairs. Take y = 2x + 1. Choose x values, work out y for each, and you get:
| x | y |
|---|---|
| -3 | -5 |
| -2 | -3 |
| -1 | -1 |
| 0 | 1 |
| 1 | 3 |
| 2 | 5 |
| 3 | 7 |
Paste the two columns and the seven points fall on a straight line. For a curve such as y = x², use more x values, closer together, so the shape shows.
Negative values plot where they belong. The axes sit along the bottom and left edges of the graph, though, not through the origin, so you won't get a four-quadrant grid with the axes crossing at (0, 0). To add vertical gridlines, turn on Gridlines under Horizontal axis.
Add a trend line
Open the Style tab, expand Scatter options and turn on Trend line. Chartjuice draws a dashed straight line through the middle of the points. Turn on Show R² and the legend says how closely the points follow it, from 0 to 1.
Plot the y = 2x + 1 table above and the line runs through all seven points, with R² at 1.00. Plot y = x² for x from -3 to 3 and R² drops to 0.00: the points make a clear U, but no straight line follows a U.
Read a trend line with care. One point far from the rest can tilt it, and a line that fits well still doesn't say that x causes y.
Make the points easier to read
Under Scatter options, Point size makes the dots bigger and Point shape swaps circles for squares, triangles or diamonds. Lower Opacity when points overlap, so a pile of them looks darker than a single point.
Both axes fit your data, so they may not start at zero. Set Min to 0 under Horizontal axis or Vertical axis when the graph should include the origin.
Ask AI to set it up
Click Ask AI and type something like "add a trend line and title the axes Time and Distance". The assistant changes the same settings you would by hand, so you can adjust anything afterward. It sees your column names and a small sample of the rows, not the whole file.
