Conditional Progress Circle Chart in Excel: Build One

Yes. In Excel for Microsoft 365 on Windows, you can make a conditional progress circle with a doughnut chart and helper formulas: the formulas place the progress value in the appropriate color category, so the ring changes color when the percentage crosses a threshold. Excel does not apply ordinary conditional formatting directly to chart slices, so the helper cells are what make the color change automatic.

What a conditional progress circle shows

A progress circle, often called a circular progress indicator, shows a value as a colored arc around a hollow center. The arc represents the completed share; the unfilled part of the ring represents what remains. In a conditional version, the progress arc also changes color according to a rule—for example, red below 50%, amber from 50% to just under 80%, and green at 80% or more.

This is useful for a dashboard where the number alone does not tell the whole story. A project at 72% might be amber, for instance, while one at 92% is green. The color rules are your choice, not built-in Excel standards, so set them to match what the values mean in your report. For a chart that only needs one fixed color, a regular doughnut chart is simpler.

The method below uses one doughnut chart with four categories: green progress, amber progress, red progress, and remaining. Only one progress category has a nonzero value at a time. The other categories are zero, and their assigned colors are ready for when the value moves into that range.

Set up the input and thresholds

Start with a small table. Put the current progress in B2, the lower threshold in D2, and the upper threshold in D3. Use numeric percentages: enter 72% in B2, 50% in D2, and 80% in D3. Format those cells as Percentage using Home > Number. A percentage is stored as a decimal in Excel, so 72% is stored as 0.72.

Next, add the chart data labels and values in A6:B9. Use these labels in A6:A9, in this order: Green progress, Amber progress, Red progress, Remaining. The order matters because it keeps the active progress slice starting at the same point in the ring. The four formulas in column B will split the progress value into the correct color band and the amount left.

For a reusable workbook, you can label D2 as Amber starts and D3 as Green starts. That makes the rules easier to understand and change later. Keep the thresholds in ascending order and use values from 0% through 100%. If the lower threshold is 50% and the upper threshold is 80%, values below 50% are red, values from 50% up to but not including 80% are amber, and values at or above 80% are green.

Build the helper formulas

With progress in B2, the lower threshold in D2, the upper threshold in D3, and the labels in A6:A9, enter these formulas in B6:B9. Each formula returns either the progress amount or zero for its color category; the final formula returns the uncompleted amount.

With that cell layout, enter in B6 for green progress: =IF($B$2>=$D$3,$B$2,0)
With that cell layout, enter in B7 for amber progress: =IF(AND($B$2>=$D$2,$B$2<$D$3),$B$2,0)
With that cell layout, enter in B8 for red progress: =IF($B$2<$D$2,$B$2,0)
With that cell layout, enter in B9 for the remaining amount: =1-$B$2

For the example value of 72%, B6 returns 0, B7 returns 0.72, B8 returns 0, and B9 returns 0.28. The chart therefore receives 72% amber progress and 28% remaining; together the values total 1, or 100%. If B2 changes to 85%, the green formula returns 0.85 and the remaining formula returns 0.15, while the amber and red formulas return zero.

Format B6:B9 as Percentage if you want to inspect the helper values. This number format does not alter the chart values. You can also hide the helper rows or put them on a separate worksheet once the chart is working, but keep the formulas and chart source range intact.

Insert the doughnut chart

Select A6:B9, including both the category labels and formula results.
Choose Insert > Insert Pie or Doughnut Chart > Doughnut.
With the chart selected, use Chart Design > Add Chart Element to remove the legend and chart title if they are not needed. A single indicator often reads more cleanly without either.
Right-click the ring and choose Format Data Series. In Series Options, increase Doughnut Hole Size to make room for a center label. Adjust the value until the ring is thick enough to read without looking crowded.

To assign the colors, select an individual slice rather than the entire series. Click the ring once, then click the desired slice again; right-click and choose Format Data Point. In the formatting pane, use Fill & Line > Fill > Solid fill and choose the color for that category. Set Green progress to green, Amber progress to amber, Red progress to red, and Remaining to a pale gray. When a category has a value of zero, it may not be visible to click. Temporarily enter a progress value in that category’s range, format its slice, and then restore the original input.

If you want the progress arc to begin at the top rather than wherever Excel places it by default, use Format Data Series and adjust Angle of first slice under Series Options. Try a few angles and keep the one that gives the layout you want. The angle changes the chart’s orientation, not the progress calculation.

Add a live percentage in the center

A center label makes the chart easier to interpret. The simplest option is a text box linked to the progress cell. Choose Insert > Text Box, draw the box over the doughnut hole, select the box border, and click the formula bar. Enter a reference such as ='Progress Dashboard'!$B$2 and press Enter. Replace Progress Dashboard with your worksheet name. Format the linked cell as a percentage, and the text box will display that percentage as the input changes.

Center the text, enlarge it, and use a font color with strong contrast against the chart background. Keep the text box’s fill and outline transparent if you want the chart hole to show through. Avoid adding several lines of small text inside the hole: the point of the indicator is to make the main figure immediately legible. If a linked text box is awkward for your layout, place the percentage in a nearby cell and use a normal chart title or label instead.

Set rules and protect the meaning

The threshold formulas define the boundary behavior explicitly. At exactly 50%, the amber formula becomes active; at exactly 80%, the green formula becomes active. This avoids gaps or overlapping bands. If your policy says that 80% should still be amber, change the amber test to include values equal to the upper threshold and change the green test to use a greater-than comparison. Decide the boundary rule before publishing the chart.

Keep the input within 0% and 100%. One option is Data > Data Validation, then set Allow to Decimal and define a minimum of 0 and maximum of 1. This helps prevent accidental entries such as 125% or negative progress. Data validation is a safeguard for ordinary entry, not a guarantee against every pasted or formula-generated value, so check source data when the workbook is used for reporting.

Color should reinforce the number, not replace it. A person viewing the chart may have difficulty distinguishing certain colors, or may print the report in grayscale. Show the percentage in the center or nearby, use clearly different shades, and consider adding a textual status such as On track or At risk when the distinction has operational importance.

Common problems and fixes

The whole ring stays one color. Confirm that the chart uses A6:B9, not just the progress input and remaining amount. Then confirm that each category has its own point color. The formulas change values; they do not automatically recolor a chart formatted as one series color.
The arc changes position when the status changes. Keep the categories in the order Green, Amber, Red, Remaining. The first three categories are zero except for the active band, so the active arc begins at the same location. Changing the order can make the starting position appear to jump.
The chart shows a gap or an unexpected total. Check that B2 is a numeric percentage, not text, and that the helper values add to 100%. For 72%, the expected values are 0%, 72%, 0%, and 28%. Also check that the remaining formula is based on 1 minus the progress value.
A slice is hard to select for formatting. A zero-value slice is not visible. Temporarily change B2 to a value in that slice’s range, format it, and restore B2. If the displayed chart does not update, check that calculation is enabled and that the chart source cells have not been changed.
The center percentage does not match the arc. Link the text box to B2, not to one of the helper cells. The helper cells contain zero for inactive color bands, so they do not represent the overall progress value.

When to use a circle chart instead of a bar

A progress circle works well for one or a few headline metrics, such as course completion, a project milestone, or a target that has a clear 0% to 100% range. It is compact and visually prominent. It is less effective when readers need to compare many values precisely. Comparing the angles or arc lengths of several doughnut charts is harder than comparing aligned bars, particularly when the values are close together.

For a dashboard with a list of tasks, a horizontal bar chart or conditional formatting data bars in cells may make differences easier to scan. A native chart is preferable when the visual needs a legend, a stable layout, or chart-specific formatting. A manually drawn circle or shape can look more customized, but it is harder to maintain and may not update as reliably as a chart linked to formulas.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can Excel conditional formatting change a doughnut slice color?
Not directly in the same way conditional formatting changes a cell fill. Use helper formulas to place the value into a category with a preassigned slice color, as described above. This makes the chart respond to the input while keeping the color choices in the chart formatting.

Can the circle show 0% and 100% correctly?
Yes. At 0%, all progress categories are zero and Remaining is 100%, so the ring is entirely the remaining color. At 100%, one progress category is 100% and Remaining is zero, so the ring is entirely the active progress color. The center label can still display the exact percentage.

Can I use more than three status colors?
Yes. Add more progress categories, assign each a nonoverlapping formula band, and give each category its own slice color. Keep the remaining category last and make sure exactly one progress formula can return the full progress value at a time. Too many bands can make the status scheme difficult to understand.

Will the chart update when I change the percentage?
Yes, when the chart uses the helper range and the input or thresholds change, Excel recalculates the formulas and updates the plotted values. If you type a new number but see no change, check the chart’s selected data range and the workbook’s calculation settings.

Do the steps differ on Mac or Excel for the web?
The formula approach and doughnut-chart idea also apply in Excel for Mac, although the ribbon layout and formatting pane can differ by release. Excel for the web supports many chart and formula features, but some formatting controls may be more limited than in the Windows desktop app. If a specific slice-formatting option is missing, finish that chart’s formatting in desktop Excel.

Try it: the Percentage Formula Generator: percent of, percent change, increase and decrease, with the formula.

More in Charts & pivot tables

Sources: Function behaviour and menu paths: Microsoft Support documentation for Excel. Method & sources

Spotted an error in this guide? Let us know.