In this article, we’ll learn to create a table in Excel. Creating tables is one of the most common and important tasks in Excel. Tables are required by almost every form of data handling and representation in Excel and hence it is important to learn to make proper tables in Microsoft Excel.
Also read: How to create a Pivot table in Excel?
Steps to create a table in Excel
This article is the ultimate guide to creating a table in excel. We will learn to create, customize and rename a table and organize the data in it in this tutorial today. Let’s get started with this beginner’s guide!
To create a table in Excel-
- Prepare numerical data that you want to feed into the table in blank cells like in the picture above.
- Select any cell in the database.
- Press CTRL+T on your keyboard, OR
- Go to Insert.
- Under the Tables section, select Table.
- A window named Create Table pops up
- Check My table has headers if you have already prepared a header for your data.
- Press OK to create.
You can see that your existing data has now been converted into a tabular database allowing you to sort and filter this data. This is how your data should look like-
Steps to sort and filter data in a table
You can sort and filter the data in a formatted table in Excel which will allow you to properly segregate and arrange this data as per your will. Let’s see how we can sort and filter data in a table in Excel.
Also read: How to remove duplicate values in Excel?
Sorting in a table
- You can see pull-down menus on the headers of the table.
- Headers with numerical data under them can be sorted in terms of ascending or descending orders.
- Headers with non-numerical data under them can be sorted in terms of alphabetical orders.
- Here, we have sorted the data as per highest to lowest age numbers.
Filtering in a table
You can choose to view or hide certain types of data available in your table. Let us take an example-
- For example, we only wish to view entries of two cities- London and Glasgow.
- Pull down on the Place heading, uncheck Select All, and check London and Glasgow, like this-
This is how your data should look like after filtering-
You can see that only data entries with London and Glasgow cities are shown and the rest are hidden.
Customizing a table
To change the color and style of your table, follow these steps-
- Select any cell in the table.
- Go to the Design tab.
- Under Table Styles, select your desired table style and color.
If want to add or remove the bands between rows and columns, follow these steps.
- Click anywhere on the table.
- Go to the Design tab.
- Under Table Style Options group, check Banded Rows or Banded Columns to view them or uncheck them to remove them.
Naming a table
You can give a custom table name to tables in Excel in a simple way-
- Select any cell in the table.
- Go to the Design tab.
- Under Properties set a table name you like.
Removing table formatting in Excel
To remove or clear table formatting in Excel, follow these steps.
- Select the entire table.
- Go to the Design tab.
- Under Table Styles group, click on the pull-down arrow in box where you can change styles.
- Click Clear at the bottom.
You can see that all table styles have been cleared from your table. To clear the filters buttons created by a table format, follow these steps.
- Click anywhere on the table.
- Go to the Design tab.
- Under Table Styles Options group, uncheck Filter Buttons.
You can see that all filter buttons have been successfully cleared from the table and your table is out of a table format.
Conclusion
This was all about creating and customizing a table from scratch in Excel. Drop a comment if you have any doubts regarding creating tables in Excel. Stay tuned for more detailed step-by-step tutorials like these!