# Microsoft Office Application Help - Excel Help forum > Excel Charting & Pivots >  >  Secondary Axis without overlapping bars

## treva26

I have a bar chart with 2 series of data using separate axis
But I cant seem to get the bars to be side by side, they are always overlapping.

Sorry but my chart is embedded inside a PowerPoint presentation, i cant seem to get it back out.

Hope you can help  :Smilie:

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## teylyn

If you post your data and chart as an Excel file or as an editable table in Powerpoint, I can show you how to fix it. But I'm not going to re-type your values to create the chart.

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## treva26

___see below___

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## treva26

Oh I managed to extract it...

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## teylyn

working off the data in your original attachment (because I did not see the subsequent posts before I prepared my reply)

attached Excel sheet shows how to prepare the data so the two data series plot side by side. Important points to note:

- set series overlap to 0%
- create two dummy columns with zero values for each series, to make room for the series on the other axis (columns C and D in the attached file).

This will muck up the automatic data table display in the chart, so you will have to trick this by copying and pasting. I have prepared the source data to show the helper columns in light gray. Format them as white text on white background and reduce the column width to a minimum. Do not hide the columns, as that will make the series in the chart disappear. Just resize them to minimum acceptable width, set the cell borders accordingly, to encapsulate the two columns for each series in a thick border, then take a screen shot of the data table and splice it into your slide.

cheers

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## treva26

Awesome thank you!

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## teylyn

If you are satisfied with the solution(s) provided, please mark your thread as Solved. 

*How to mark a thread Solved*
Go to the first post 
Click edit
Click Go Advanced
Just below the word *Title* you will see a dropdown with the word No prefix.
Change to Solved
Click Save

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## DomK

Hello, I've downloaded your chart and trying to replicate it using mine and your data but having difficulty. Any chance of a step by step?

At the moment: Two dummy series as set up in your example, whited out, reduced to min width. Then I create a column chart, but unable to select the percentage series as it's too small to select, so adding the secondary axis on the total series and they appear OK, but slightly overlapped and different width columns and not sure how to rectify that - Gap width 150%, Overlap 0% as your charts are.  Any help is appreciated. Thanks very much.

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## teylyn

_Your post does not comply with Rule 2 of our Forum_ RULES. Don't post a question in the thread of another member -- start your own thread. If you feel it's particularly relevant, provide a link to the other thread.

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## seanspotatobusiness

The number of people looking for a solution to this, only to have to implement a messy work around, suggests that MS should have fixed this issue a long time. It's a pretty basic feature to have sorted out at some point in the last 10 years...

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## FDelgado

Helpful! Thank you.

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