How to Rotate Text in an Excel Chart (2 Methods)

Scenario

Here, we have an Excel chart of sales quantity containing months on the X-axis and the value of sales quantity on the Y-axis. Now we want to rotate the text. Rotate Text in an Excel Chart

Method 1 – Changing the Orientation of Text in an Excel Chart

Select the text on the X-axis.

Go to the Home tab and click on an option (such as Angle Counterclockwise) to rotate the X-axis text counterclockwise.

Result:

The output can be seen in the below image:

Method 2 – Using Format Axis to Rotate Text in an Excel Chart

In this method, there are two ways to rotate text using Format Axis:

2.1 Selecting Text Options

Select the text on the X-axis.
Right-click and choose Format Axis.

In the Format Axis dialog box, select Text options.”
Click on the Text Box option.
Choose a text direction (e.g., Rotate all text 90⁰) to rotate the X-axis text clockwise.

The desired output can be seen in the image below:

Rotate by Selecting a Custom Angle

Right-click the X-axis text and select Format Axis.

Navigate to Format Axis > Text Options > Text Box.
Enter a custom angle (e.g., 30⁰) to achieve the desired rotation.

Result:

The desired output can be seen in the image below:

2.2 Selecting Axis Options

Select the X-axis text and right-click to access Format Axis.

In the Format Axis dialog, choose Axis options.
Under Alignment, select a text direction (e.g., Rotate all text 90⁰) for clockwise rotation.