In a column graph:

• the data is represented in the form of vertical columns
• the horizontal axis has the names of the data represented
• the number of times each piece of data occurs is represented on the vertical axis
• all the columns are of the same width
• some space is left between the columns to distinguish the different data points being measured

Sometimes multiple columns and stacked columns can be used to compare several data sets together directly.

Column graphs work best when you have to represent discrete quantitative data.