Visualizing data as a Column Stacked chart is a common requirement for business reports, budget comparisons and KPI dashboards. With Aspose.Cells for .NET you can create such charts in a few lines of code, without needing Microsoft Excel installed on the server. This guide walks you through the entire process – from preparing sample data to customizing axes, legends and colors – and provides a complete, ready‑to‑run C# example.
This article covers the following topics:
- C# Excel Library to Create Column Stacked Charts
- Create a Column Stacked Chart in Excel using C#
- Free Resources
- Conclusion
- See Also
C# Excel Library to Create Column Stacked Charts
Aspose.Cells for .NET is a high‑performance Excel automation library that enables developers to create, edit, and render Excel files completely programmatically. When it comes to charting, Aspose.Cells offers a rich set of chart types, including the Column Stacked chart (ChartType.ColumnStacked). Key advantages of using Aspose.Cells for chart creation are:
- Zero dependency on Microsoft Office – works on any Windows, Linux or Docker environment.
- Full control over chart elements – series, axes, legends, markers, colors, data labels, etc.
- Support for all Excel file formats – XLSX, XLS, CSV, ODS and more.
- High scalability – generate thousands of charts in a single pass without noticeable performance loss.
Getting Started
Download the latest release from the Aspose.Cells .NET releases page.
Install the NuGet package:
PM> Install-Package Aspose.CellsAdd a reference to
Aspose.Cellsin your C# project.
Create a Column Stacked Chart in Excel using C#
Below is a complete, self‑contained example that demonstrates how to:
- Create a new workbook.
- Populate a worksheet with sample data.
- Add a Column Stacked chart.
- Customize series colors, axis titles and legend placement.
- Save the workbook as an XLSX file.
Explanation of the Code
| Step | What the code does | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Creates a new Workbook and accesses the first Worksheet. | Provides a clean canvas for the chart. |
| 2 | Populates the sheet with month identifiers and quarterly sales figures. | Stacked charts require a categorical axis (Month) and multiple data series (Q1‑Q3). |
| 3 | Adds a ChartType.ColumnStacked object and sets its position on the sheet. | Defines the chart type and where it will appear. |
| 4 | Adds three series (NSeries.Add) – one for each quarter – and assigns a unique color. | Each series becomes a stack segment; explicit colors improve readability. |
| 5 | Customizes axis titles, legend placement, and enables data labels. | Enhances chart semantics and visual clarity. |
| 6 | Saves the workbook to an .xlsx file. | Generates the final Excel document that can be opened in any spreadsheet tool. |
Tip: If you need to display the total of each stacked column, enable the data label for the
ValueAxisand setchart.NSeries[i].HasDataLabel = true;as shown above.
Free Resources
- Developer’s Guide: https://docs.aspose.com/cells/net/
- Online Apps: https://products.aspose.app/cells/family
- API Reference: https://reference.aspose.com/cells/net/
- How‑to Articles: https://blog.aspose.com/categories/aspose.cells-product-family/
Conclusion
Creating a Column Stacked chart with Aspose.Cells for .NET is straightforward and does not require Microsoft Excel on the server. By following the steps above you can programmatically generate professional‑looking stacked column visualizations, fully customize their appearance, and export the result to any Excel‑compatible format. Leverage the power of Aspose.Cells to automate reporting, dashboards, and data analysis tasks across Windows, Linux or containerized environments.
For additional assistance, visit our free support forum.