How to use table sorting in Excel

In this article, we will learn How to use table sorting in Excel.

What is Sorting ?

Sorting is any process of arranging items systematically in Excel 2016 and has two common, yet distinct meanings:

  1. Ordering: organizing items in a sequence ordered by some criterion like A to Z or vice versa and smallest to largest value or vice versa.
  2. Categorizing: grouping items with similar properties like sorting on the basis of colour or value criteria.

Mostly we use ordering A-Z or Z-A in Excel

In Microsoft Excel, we can sort the data by using the AutoFilter sort’s data according to specific sort order rules.

Example :

All of these might be confusing to understand. Let's understand how to use the function using an example. Here we have two columns Item and Units.

We need to sort or filter Item and units. So we will select these two cells A1 and B1.

Click Home > Sort & Filter > Filter or use shortcut keys Ctrl+ Shift + L.

Now you will see a table like this

First, we will sort the column in ascending order i.e. from smallest to largest.

Select smallest to largest and you will have the excel sort table.

As you can see, the unit column is sorted in A to Z, i.e. ascending order.

Now we will sort the item column in descending order, i.e. from Z to A while keeping the prior changes.

Select Sort Z to A and click OK.

As you can see the table is in a sorted manner.

Here are all the observational notes using the .... function in Excel
Notes :

  1. You can just use the shortcut Ctrl + Shift + L to apply sort and filter on the table, it can visible on the first row of table.
  2. Avoid data validation cells using sorting. Data Validation is applied over cells and sorting is applied over values.

Hope this article about How to use table sorting in Excel is explanatory. Find more articles on calculating values and related Excel formulas here. If you liked our blogs, share it with your friends on Facebook. And also you can follow us on Twitter and Facebook. We would love to hear from you, do let us know how we can improve, complement or innovate our work and make it better for you. Write to us at info@exceltip.com.

Related Articles :

The SORT Function in Excel 365 (new version) : The SORT function  returns the sorted array by the given column number in the array. It also works on horizontal data.

Sort numbers using Excel SMALL Function : To sort numbers using formula in Excel 2016 and older, you can use the SMALL function with other helping functions.

Sort Numeric Values with Excel RANK Function : To sort the numeric values we can use the Rank function. The formula is

Excel Formula to Sort Text : To sort text values using formula in excel we simply use the COUNTIF function. Here is the formula

Popular Articles :

How to use the IF Function in Excel : The IF statement in Excel checks the condition and returns a specific value if the condition is TRUE or returns another specific value if FALSE.

How to use the VLOOKUP Function in Excel : This is one of the most used and popular functions of excel that is used to lookup value from different ranges and sheets.

How to use the SUMIF Function in Excel : This is another dashboard essential function. This helps you sum up values on specific conditions.

How to use the COUNTIF Function in Excel : Count values with conditions using this amazing function. You don't need to filter your data to count specific values. Countif function is essential to prepare your dashboard.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Terms and Conditions of use

The applications/code on this site are distributed as is and without warranties or liability. In no event shall the owner of the copyrights, or the authors of the applications/code be liable for any loss of profit, any problems or any damage resulting from the use or evaluation of the applications/code.