Expense Total (Quick Chart)
Overview
- Column chart, the first of the two chart types the Quick Chart web part offers, rendering total claimed by expense category
- Pie chart, the web part’s second chart type, added as a separate Quick Chart web part on the same page so one dataset answers two questions at once
- Automatic value labels above every column, so each figure is read directly rather than estimated against the gridlines
- A value axis the web part scales and labels on its own, running here from zero to 200,000 in even steps
- Chart title plus custom X and Y axis titles, all typed straight into the web part property pane
- Pie slices labeled automatically with the category, its percentage, and the underlying value – built-in behavior rather than a setting to switch on
- Both charts read their source live and cap at fifty data points, the web part’s display ceiling; ten categories sit comfortably inside it
Benefits
- Shows where the travel budget actually goes, ranked, without anyone building a pivot table
- Separates cost from volume, which is what tells you whether to renegotiate a supplier or simplify a policy
- Puts the smallest categories on the same axis as the biggest, so nothing is quietly dropped for being immaterial
- Turns a list finance already maintains into reporting, with no new system to buy or roll out
- Serves both the finance director and the budget owner, because both charts come off the same list
- Reads the list live, so the chart moves as the month’s totals are updated
- Takes about five minutes to set up, with no code and nothing to license beyond Microsoft 365
Details
- Chart Types: Column chart, Pie chart
Common Questions About the Expense Total Chart
What is this expense chart built with?
The Quick Chart web part, out of the box in SharePoint, pointed at a standard SharePoint list. There is no expense analytics module, no Copilot license, and nothing to license beyond Microsoft 365. Both charts sit directly on a SharePoint page next to the list they read from – the kind of clean, maintainable reporting Greg Zelfond builds for finance teams.
What is included in this expense example?
A ten-row SharePoint list of expense categories, a column chart of total claimed by category, and a pie chart of reports submitted. The column chart ranks spend from Airfare at 148,920 down to Client Gifts at 12,850. The pie splits 1,942 submitted reports across the same ten categories.
Where does the chart data come from?
A single SharePoint list with three columns – expense category, total claimed, and reports submitted – and ten rows, one per category. Quick Chart plots rows exactly as they sit, so the category totals are worked out in the list rather than by the chart.
What are the limits of the Quick Chart web part?
Four worth knowing. It draws column and pie charts only. It shows at most fifty items. The list needs one text column for the X axis and one number or currency column for the Y axis, or it will not appear as a data source. And it does no grouping or summing – one row becomes one data point, so the list must be pre-aggregated. It does read the list live, so an updated total appears without republishing.
Should we use Copilot, the Quick Chart web part, or Power BI?
It depends on how much you need. The Quick Chart web part is the lightest option – one chart, pointed at a list, no setup. A Copilot-generated dashboard suits a full page with filters and several linked charts that move together. Power BI earns its place when data volumes are large, sources need joining, or row-level security and scheduled refresh matter.
Can Greg build this for our organization?
Yes – this is exactly the kind of work Greg Zelfond does. As an independent SharePoint consultant and Microsoft MVP, he sets up the underlying list, shapes the columns so the chart is worth drawing, and builds the reporting around the questions your leadership actually asks rather than the ones the data happens to answer. Reach out through the contact page.
