How to Make a Violin Plot in Excel (And Why You Shouldn't)

So, you need to make a violin plot in Excel. Maybe your PI insisted, or maybe it's the only software installed on the lab computer. The bad news? Excel does not have a native violin plot chart type.

The good news? You can do it, but it involves a hacky workaround using mirrored histograms or scatter plots with error bars. Here is the step-by-step guide (and a much faster alternative at the end).

The Excel Workaround (The Hard Way)

Step 1: Calculate the Kernel Density Estimation (KDE)

Excel doesn't do KDEs. You'll need to:

1. Create bins for your data range.
2. Use the FREQUENCY array formula to count data points in each bin.
3. Smooth the data manually or use a Gaussian formula to estimate the curve.

Step 2: Create Mirrored Series

To get the "violin" shape, you need two series for each group:

• Right Side: The positive calculated density values.
• Left Side: The negative of those values (multiply by -1).

Step 3: Plot as an Area Chart

Insert a "Stacked Area Chart". Add your Positive and Negative series. You should see a shape that vaguely resembles a violin.

Step 4: Rotate and Format

Most violin plots are vertical. Excel's area charts are horizontal. You'll need to swap axes or rotate the chart. Then, spend 20 minutes removing gridlines, adjusting colors, and trying to add a box plot inside (which requires another overlay chart).

The Plotivy Way (The Easy Way)

Why spend 2 hours fighting Excel when you can do it in 30 seconds?

Plotivy uses the Python seaborn library under the hood, which performs mathematically accurate Kernel Density Estimations automatically. No formulas, no hacks.