Learning how to make a pie chart in Numbers on Mac takes a few minutes: Apple’s free spreadsheet app draws the pie from a column of names and a column of numbers, and the Format sidebar handles labels and colors. The steps below follow current versions of Numbers on macOS; Apple’s Numbers user guide explains every menu.
Need the chart right now? Paste your two columns into the maker above and download a PNG. The steps for Numbers follow.
How should the table look?
Numbers needs one column of names and one column of numbers, with a header row:
| Category | Amount |
|---|---|
| Housing | 1400 |
| Food | 600 |
| Transport | 250 |
| Savings | 500 |
| Other | 350 |
Leave the total row out of the selection, or it becomes a slice the size of everything else. Sort from largest to smallest first (click the column, then the sort option in the Organize sidebar), so the biggest slice starts at the top.
How do you add the pie chart?
- Select the cells with the names and numbers, headers included.
- Click the Chart button in the toolbar and stay on the 2D tab.
- Click the pie chart (or the donut next to it). Numbers places the chart on the sheet, linked to your table.
- Check the slices. If the chart shows one slice per column instead of one per category, click the chart, choose Edit Data References, switch between plotting rows and columns in the bar at the bottom of the window, and click Done.
The chart updates by itself when you change a number in the table, which makes Numbers handy for budgets you revisit every month.
How do you show percentages on the slices?
- Click the chart and open the Format sidebar (the paintbrush button at the top right).
- Click the Wedges tab (called Segments for a donut chart).
- Tick Values, then choose Percentage in the Value Data Format pop-up menu. Set the number of decimals with the arrows next to it: 0 or 1 is plenty.
- Tick Data Point Names to print the category on each slice. With names on the slices, turn off the Legend in the Chart tab.
To label one slice only, click that slice first and then turn on its label. This is a neat trick for a chart that highlights one number, such as savings.
How do you change colors, the donut hole and the angle?
- Colors: in the Chart tab of the Format sidebar, open Chart Colors for a ready-made palette, or select a single slice and set its fill.
- Donut hole: on a donut chart, drag the Inner Radius slider on the Segments tab. A medium hole leaves space for a total, which you add with a text box.
- Rotation: the rotation angle control turns the pie, so the slice you talk about sits at 12 o’clock.
- Pull out a slice: drag a single slice away from the center. Use it for one slice at most.
Skip the 3D tab for pie charts. A tilted pie makes the front slices look bigger than they are, and readers notice.
How do you use the chart outside Numbers?
- Keynote and Pages: copy the chart and paste it into a slide or document. It stays an editable chart.
- PNG image: copy the chart, open Preview, choose File > New from Clipboard, then File > Export and pick PNG.
- Excel: File > Export To > Excel keeps the table and the chart for colleagues on Windows.
Which mistakes should you avoid in Numbers?
- Selecting the total row, as mentioned above.
- Too many categories. Past 6 slices, labels start to overlap. Group small ones into “Other” with a SUM formula.
- Percent labels with 3 decimals. Numbers keeps the precision of your data; set decimals to 0 or 1 in Value Data Format.
- Mixing units. Hours and euros don’t share a pie. One chart, one unit.
Is there a faster way than Numbers?
For one chart, the pie chart generator is quicker: paste the two columns, choose labels, download PNG or SVG. It also lists the percent and degrees of each slice. For a ring with the total in the middle, use the donut chart maker. Working on Windows or in the browser? Follow the guides for Excel or Google Sheets.
This guide is part of the free pie chart toolkit from Fe/male Switch, a startup game and incubator where women build their first company. A budget pie like the example above is one of the first charts in any business plan.
Published 27 October 2026 · by the Fe/male Switch team