How To Draw A Normal Distribution In Excel

A normal distribution is a distribution of a continuous variable. Continuous variables include height, weight and income, and anything that is measured on a continuous scale. The normal distribution is the "bell-shaped" curve; many variables are distributed approximately normally, including many physical traits such as height or weight, and also variables such as IQ. You can create a graph of a normal distribution in Excel.

Step 1

Enter column headings. In cell A1, put "multiplier"; in B1, put "X"; in C1, put "Mean"; in D1, put "Standard Deviation"; and in E1, put "Normal."

Step 2

Decide on the mean and standard deviation you want for your distribution. For example, IQ has a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 15.

Step 3

Enter the mean and standard deviation. Put the mean in cell C2 and the standard deviation in cell D2. Copy these to cells C3 and D3.

Step 4

Enter multiplier. In cell A2 put -4, in cell A3 put =a2+.1.

Step 5

Enter the normal distribution. In cell E2 put =norm.dist(b2, c2, d2, FALSE). Copy this to cell E3.

Step 6

Copy the third row to rows 4 through 82.

Step 7

Highlight columns B and E.

Step 8

Make a chart. Click "Insert," "Scatter," "Scatter with smooth lines." This will create a normal distribution graph.