Excel create table from columns

Do you want to make a table in Excel? This post is going to show you how to create a table from your Excel data.

Entering and storing data is a common task in Excel. If this is something you’re doing, then you need to use a table.

Tables are containers for your data! They help you keep all your related data together and organized.

Tables have a lot of great features and work well with other tools inside and outside of Excel, so you should definitely be using them with your data.

This post is going to show you all the ways you can create a table from your data in Excel. Get your copy of the example workbook used in this post and follow along!

Tabular Data Format for Excel Tables

Excel tables are the perfect container for tabular datasets due to their row and column structure. Just make sure your data follows these rules.

• The first row of your dataset should contain a descriptive column heading.
• Your data should have no blank column headings.
• Your data should have no blank columns or blank rows.
• Your data should have no subtotals or grand totals.
• One row in your data should represent exactly one record of data.
• One column should contain exactly one type of data.

If your data is rectangular in shape and adheres to the above rules, then it’s ready to be put into a table.

Create a Table from the Insert Tab

Now that your data is ready to be placed inside a table, how can you do that?

It’s very easy and will only take a few clicks!

You’ll be able to add your data in a table from the Insert tab. Follow these steps to get your data into a table!

1. Select a cell inside your data.
2. Go to the Insert tab.
3. Select the Table command in the Tables section.

This is going to open the Create Table menu with your data range selected. You should see a green dash line around your selected data and you can adjust the selection if needed.

1. Check the My table has headers option. This is needed if the first row of your data contains column name headings.
2. Press the OK button.

Your data is now inside a table! You’ll easily be able to tell the data is inside an Excel Table now because a default table formatting is automatically applied.

You can go to the Table Design tab and select other style options from the Table Styles section.

💡 Tip: Your table will get a default name such as Table1. You should give your new table a descriptive name as this is how you will refer to it in formulas and other tools.

Create a Table from the Home Tab

Another place you can access the table command is from the Home tab.

You can use the Format as Table command to create a table.

1. Select a cell inside your data.
2. Go to the Home tab.
3. Select the Format as Table command in the Styles section.

1. Select a style option for your table.
2. Check the option for My table has headers.
3. Press the OK button.

This is a great option as you get to choose the table style during the process of making your table.

Create a Table with a Keyboard Shortcut

Creating a table is such a common task that there is a keyboard shortcut for it.

Select your data and press Ctrl + T on your keyboard to turn your dataset into a table.

This is an easy shortcut to remember since T stands for Table.

There is also a legacy shortcut available from when tables were called lists. Select your data and if you press Ctrl + L this will also make a table. In this case, L stands for List.

Create a Table with Quick Analysis

When you select any range Excel will show you the Quick Analysis options in the lower right corner.

This will give you quick access to conditional formatting, pivot tables, charts, totals, and sparklines. The menu also includes the table command to convert the data into a table.

You can follow these steps to create a table from the Quick Analysis tools.

1. Select your entire dataset. You can select any cell in the data and press Ctrl + A and this will select the full range.

This should automatically show the Quick Analysis tool in the lower right corner of the selected range.

• Click on the Quick Analysis tools or press Ctrl + Q to open the Quick Analysis menu.
• Go to the Tables tab.
• Click on the Table command. When you hover your cursor over the Table command it will show you a preview of your data inside a table!

📝 Note: This method allows you to skip the Create Table menu and the Quick Analysis will guess if your data has column headings or not. Excel will apply any column headings to your table accordingly.

Quick Analysis can be disabled from the Excel Options menu if the pop-up command is something you find annoying.

1. Go to the File tab.
2. Select the Options menu.
3. Go to the General tab of the Excel Options menu.
4. Uncheck the Show Quick Analysis options on selection option.
5. Press the OK button.

📝 Note: This will only disable the small pop-up command from showing when you select your data. You can still use the Ctrl + Q keyboard shortcut to access the Quick Analysis tools for any selected range.

Create a Table with Power Query

Power Query is a very useful tool for transforming your data, but you can also create a table during the process of building your queries.

If your data isn’t already inside a table, you can use the From Table/Range query to make a table.

1. Select your data.
2. Go to the Data tab.
3. Press the From Table/Range command in the Get & Transform Data section.

This will open the Create Table menu.

1. Check the My table has headers option if the first row in your data contains column headings.
2. Press the OK button.

This will add your data to a table and then open the Power Query Editor where you will be able to build your query based on the new table.

When you are finished building your query, you can go to the Home tab of the Power Query editor and press the Close and Load command.

This will give you the option to create another table filled with the transformed data. Select the Table option and press the OK button to load the transformed data into a table.

⚠️ Warning: This method does create a table, but doesn’t give you the opportunity to name the table before you build your queries. This means your queries will reference the generic table name such as Table1, and if you later change the table name you will also have to update the reference in your query.

Create Multiple Tables from a List with VBA

Suppose you need to create multiple tables in your Excel file. Maybe you need to create a table of sales data for each month of the year. Doing this manually could be a time-consuming process.

This is where you could use VBA to create multiple tables with the required columns.

Go to the Developer tab and select the Visual Basic command to open the visual basic editor. Then go to the Insert tab of the visual basic editor and select the Module option to create a new module to add your VBA macro.

Sub AddTables()
Dim myRange As Range
Dim sheetTest As Boolean
Dim myHeadings As Variant
Dim colCount As Integer
Set myRange = Selection

myHeadings = [{"ID","Date","Item","Quantity","Price"}]
colCount = UBound(myHeadings)

For Each c In myRange.Cells
sheetTest = False
    For Each ws In ThisWorkbook.Worksheets
        If ws.Name = c.Value Or c.Value = "" Then
            sheetTest = True
        End If
    Next ws
    If Not (sheetTest) Then
        With Sheets
            Sheets.Add.Name = c.Value
            Sheets(c.Value).Select
            Range("A1").Resize(1, colCount).Value = myHeadings
            ActiveSheet.ListObjects.Add(xlSrcRange, Range("A1").Resize(1, colCount), , xlYes).Name = c.Value & "Sales"
        End With
    End If
Next c
End Sub

This code will loop through the selected range and add a new sheet for each cell in the range. The code tests if the sheet name exists and if it doesn’t then it creates a new sheet named from the cell value.

The column headings are added to the new sheet starting at cell A1. This is then turned into a table and the table is named based on the sheet name.

myHeadings = [{"ID","Date","Item","Quantity","Price"}]

The above line of code is used to create the column headings in each table. You can adjust this to suit your needs.

You can then run this macro to create multiple tables.

1. Select the range of cells that contain the list the names for each table you want to create. For example, you might want a list of month names to create a table for each month.
2. Press the Alt + F8 keyboard shortcut to open the Macro menu.
3. Select your macro.
4. Press the Run button.

This will run and create a new sheet for each item in your selection. Each sheet will contain a table with the same column headings and be named based on the items in the selected list.

Create Multiple Tables from a List with Office Scripts

If you are using Excel online and want to automate the process of creating multiple tables from a list, then you will need to use Office Scripts.

This is a JavaScript based language that can help you automate tasks in Excel online.

Go to the Automate tab and select the New Script command to open the Office Script Editor.

function main(workbook: ExcelScript.Workbook) {

	//Create an array with the column headings
	let myHeaders = [["ID", "Date", "Item", "Quantity", "Price"]]
	let colCount = myHeaders[0].length;
	//Create an array with the values from the selected range
	let selectedRange = workbook.getSelectedRange();
	let selectedValues = selectedRange.getValues();
	//Get dimensions of selected range
	let rowHeight = selectedRange.getRowCount();
	let colWidth = selectedRange.getColumnCount();

	//Loop through each item in the selected range
	for (let i = 0; i < rowHeight; i++) {
		for (let j = 0; j < colWidth; j++) {
			try {
				//Create a new sheet with name from the selected range
				let thisSheet = workbook.addWorksheet(selectedValues[i][j]);
				//Add column headings to new sheet and convert to table
				thisSheet.getRange("A1").getAbsoluteResizedRange(1, colCount).setValues(myHeaders);
				let newTable = workbook.addTable(thisSheet.getRange("A1").getAbsoluteResizedRange(1, colCount), true);
				newTable.setName(selectedValues[i][j] + "Sales");
			}
			catch (e) {
				//do nothing
			};
		};
	};
};

Copy and paste the above code into the Code Editor. Press the Save script button to save the script and then you can use the Run button to execute the script.

This Office Script code will loop through the active range in your workbook and create a new sheet for each cell in the selected range and name it based on the value in the cell.

let myHeaders = [["ID", "Date", "Item", "Quantity", "Price"]]

The column headings are added to each new sheet starting in cell A1. You can adjust the above line of code to change the column headings to suit your needs.

These column headings are then turned into a table and the table is named based on the sheet name.

You can then run this script using the following steps.

1. Select a range of cells that contain the list of tables you want to create.
2. Click on the Run button in the Code Editor.

The code will run and create all the sheets with tables in each sheet.

Conclusions

Tables are a very useful feature for your tabular data in Excel.

Your data can be added to a table in several ways such as from the Insert tab, from the Home tab, with a keyboard shortcut, or using the Quick Analysis tools.

Tables work well with other tools in Excel such as Power Query. Because of this, Excel will even automatically convert your data into a table before using Power Query.

Creating multiple tables in your workbook can also be automated using either VBA or Office Scripts.

How do you make your tables? Do you know any other tips? Let me know in the comments section below!

Microsoft Excel is convenient for creating tables and doing calculations. Its working area is a set of cells to be filled with data. Consequently, the data can be formatted, used for building graphs, charts, summary reports.

For a beginner, working with tables in Excel may seem complicated at the first glance. It is differs considerably from the principles of table construction in Word. However, let us start from the very basics: creating and formatting tables. By the time you reach the end of this article, you will understand there is no better tool for creating tables than Excel.



Creating a table in Excel: a dummy’s guide

Working with Excel tables for dummies does not tolerate haste. There are different ways to create a table for a specific purpose, and each of them has its advantages. Therefore, let us start with assessing the situation visually.

Look carefully at the work sheet of the table processor:

It is a set of cells in columns and rows. Essentially, it’s a table. The columns are marked with letters. The rows are designated with numbers. There are no borders.

First of all, let’s learn to work with cells, rows and columns.

How to select a column and a row

To select the entire column, left-click on the letter that marks it.

To select a row, click on the number it’s designated with.

To select several columns or rows, left-click on the name, hold down the button and drag the pointer.

To select a column with the help of hot keys, place the cursor in any cell of the column and press Ctrl + Space. The key combination Shift + Space is used to select a row.

How to resize cells

If your information does not fit in the table, you need to resize the cells.

1. You can move them manually by grabbing the cell boundary with the left mouse button.



2. If the cell contains a long word, you can double-click on the boundary of the column/row. The program will expand its boundary automatically.



3. If you need to increase the height of a row preserving the column width, use the button «Wrap Text» in the tool bar.

To change the column width and the row height in a certain range, resize 1 column/row (by dragging its boundaries manually) – and all the selected columns and rows will be resized automatically.

Important note. To go back to the previous size, you can press the «Undo Typing» button or the hot-key combination CTRL+Z. However, it works only if used immediately. Later on, it will not help.

To bring the rows to their initial boundaries, open the tool menu: «HOME»-«Format» and choose «AutoFit Row Height».

This method does not work for columns. Click «Format» — « AutoFit Row Width» Memorize this number. Select any cell in the column that needs to go back to the initial size. Click «Format» — «Column Width» again and enter the value suggested by the program (as a rule, it’s 8.43 – the number of characters in the Calibri font, size 11 pt). OK.

How to insert a column or row

Select the column/row to the right of/below the place where the insertion needs to be made. That is, the new column will appear to the left of the selected cell. The new row will be pasted above it.

Right-click on the cell and select «Insert» in the drop-down menu (or hit the hot-key combination CTRL+SHIFT+»=»).

Select «Entire column» and press OK.

Hint. To insert a new column quickly, select a column in the desired position and hit CTRL+SHIFT+PLUS.

All these skills will come handy when building a table in Excel. You will need to resize the cells and insert rows/columns in the process.

Creating a table with formulas step by step

1. Fill in the header manually by entering the column headings. Fill in the rows by entering your data. Apply the acquired knowledge in practice: expand the column boundaries, adjust the row height.



2. To fill in the «Sum» column, place the cursor in its first cell. Enter «=». In such a way, we inform Excel: a formula will be here. Select the cell B2 (with the first price). Enter the multiplication symbol (*). Select the cell C2 (with the quantity). Press ENTER.



3. When you hover the pointer over the cell containing the formula, a small cross will appear in its bottom right corner. It points out the autocomplete marker. Grab it with the left mouse button and drag it to the end of the column. The formula will be copied into every cell.



4. Designate the boundaries of your table. Select the range containing your data. Click the button «HOME»-«Border» (on the main page in the «Font» menu). And click «All Borders».

Now the column and row borders will be visible when you print the table.

The «Font» menu allows you to format the data in your Excel table the way you would do it in Word.

For example, change the font size and highlight the header in bold. You may also apply center alignment, word wrap, etc.



Creating a table in Excel: a step-by-step instruction

You already know the simplest way to create tables. However, Excel can offer a more convenient variant (in terms of the subsequent formatting and work with the data).

Let us construct a smart (dynamic) table:

1. Go to the «INSERT» tab – the «Table» tool (or press the hot-key combination CTRL+T).



2. This will open a dialog window, in which you need to enter the data range. Check the box for a table with headings. Click OK. It’s no big deal if you don’t enter the proper range on the first try. The smart table is flexible, dynamic.

Important note. You can also take an alternative route: start with selecting the range of cells, then press the «Table» button.

Now enter your data into the ready framework. If you need an additional column, place the cursor in the heading cell. Make the entry and press ENTER. The range will expand automatically.

If you need additional rows, grab the autocomplete marker in the bottom right corner and drag it downward.

How to work with a table in Excel

With the release of new versions of the program, working with tables in Excel has become more interesting and dynamic. After a smart table has been formed on the spreadsheet, the tool «TABLE TOOLS» — «DESIGN» becomes available.

Here you can name the table or resize it.

Various styles are available to you, as well as the opportunity to transform the table into a regular range or a consolidated sheet.

MS Excel dynamic electronic tables offer immense opportunities. Let us begin with the basic skills of data entry and autocompletion:

1. Select a cell by clicking on it with the left mouse button. Enter the text/numeric value. Press ENTER. If you need to change the value, place the cursor in the cell again and enter the new data.
2. When you enter a value repetitively, Excel will recognize it. You will only need to enter several symbols and press enter.



3. In a smart table, to apply a formula to the entire column, enter it in the first cell. The program will copy the formula in other cells automatically.



4. To calculate the totals, select the column containing the values plus an empty cell for the future total and click the «Sum» button (the «Editing» tool group on the «HOME» tab, or press the hot-key combination ALT+»=»).

When you click on the little arrow to the right of every subheading in the header, you obtain access to the additional tools for working with the data in the table.

Sometimes the user has to work with huge tables, in which you need to scroll several thousand rows to see the totals. Deleting the rows is not an option (you will still need the data later). However, you can hide them. To this end, use number filters (depicted in the image above). Uncheck the values that need to be hidden.

Convert Data Into a Table in Excel

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Creating And Working With Tables in Excel

You may think that an Excel Workbook already provides a table of data to you, and in a sense it does, an area consisting of Rows and Columns, with column and row headings and values.

It is, however, possible to create formal Tables from ranges of cells on an Excel worksheet.

Why would we want to do this?

Well, here are a few reasons:

• Automatic Filtering & Sorts
• Predefined formatting and colour schemes to choose from
• Colour banded rows
• Table Headings
• Single table name available to address all the data in that region of a worksheet (dynamic table size)
• Automatic Totals
• Slicers

There are many other benefits too.

Let’s take a look. 

Create A Table From a Range of Cells

The screen shot below shows some raw sales data that has been pasted into an Excel Worklbook.

We can quite happily work on this data without converting it to a table. We can:

• Add columns
• Add rows
• Enter formulae into Cells
• Format cells
• Add Validation Rules to cells.

And so on ……

But, ……..

Tables give us just a little bit more.

We will create a table from the above data.

On the Insert ribbon there is a Table option – shown in the screen shot below:

Highlight the area of the worksheet that contains the data along with the column headings and then click on Table:

A dialog pops up where you can confirm or alter the area containing the table data. You can also indicate if the table includes column headings (it does in this example).

Clicking on OK results in the table being created with a default Table Style:

Immediate benefits are:

• Formatted with a Table Style
• Banded formatting for alternate row shading
• Headings that remain frozen at the top of the table as you scroll down records
• Automatic filter drop downs for each column in the table
• Sorting options via the drop downs for each column in the table
• Table Name that can be used to address the whole table

Table Styles & Column Banding

The default blue based table style can be changed via the Table Tools Design Ribbon.

The Table Styles part of the ribbon offers quite a few options for formatting the table:

We will select one of the green themes:

The default styles include Column Banding to make it easier to identify values from a row. 

Column Banding can be turned off via the Table Tools Design ribbon:

You can see that the Table Style Options section of the ribbon offers tick boxes for Banded Rows (on by default) and Banded Columns.

In the following example we have deselected Banded Rows and selected Banded Columns.

Table Headings

In the screen shot below you can see the default table headings:

When you scroll down the data rows the headings stay displayed at the top of the worksheet area (where you would normally see the Row Letters):

Table Filters & Sort Operations

Every column in the table gets automatic filtering and sort options via the drop down seen to the right of each column name:

Table Name

The Table is automatically given a name. This can be changed as shown in the following screen shot, to make it a more easily remembered and relevant name. The following example shows a table renamed as SalesData.

This table name can then be used in any formula or tool that requires the range of cells in the table. This range will also be dynamic so that as the table grows with new rows and columns they will be included in the referencing formulae and tools.

For example, we can use the table name when using the table data as the source for a Pivot Table:

Note that we have used the table name, SalesData, in the Table/Range field instead of referencing the Worksheet and Cell Range.

Here is a sample Pivot Table from this source:

Adding Automatic Totals to an Excel Table

On the Table Tools Design Menu the Table Style Options group has a “Total Row” tick box.  

If you tick this box a total row is added to the bottom of the table.

Once the total row has been added you can click in any of the cells in this row and an arrow will appear to the right of it enabling you to access a list of available aggregate functions to choose from. This is shown in the above sreen shot.

The following example shows an average has been added to the Product Unit Price and a total has been added to the Total Sales Amount column:

As new rows are added to the table the totals are automatically updated.

Another big benefit of Excel Table Total Rows is that if filtering is in place the aggrgate function results are automatically updated to reflect the filtered rows rather than just displaying the overall aggregate values.

In the following example there is a filter on the Sales Territory Region column, so the Totals row is showing the average product price for Canada and the total sales amount for Canada:

..

Using Slicers With Excel Tables to Filter Data

Slicers are a wonderful way of filtering records. Typically they are used wioth Pivot Tables and Pivot Charts to slice and dice to looik at different sections of business data, whether that be a specific product, a specific set of years or regions, etc.

Slicers can be used with Excel Tables too. With the cursor located in a cell that belongs to your Excel table select the Table Tools Design ribbon. In the Tools section of the ribbon you will see an “Insert Slicer” option.

A dialog will open enabling you to select any of the available table columns to be added as slicers:

In the following example you can see that we selected the Promotion column and a slicer has been added to the worksheet:

 

The four promotion values that appear in the table data are listed and selected by default. Filtering of the table can be implemented by clicking on promotion values in the slicer – the records in the table the slicer is linked to will automatically be updated to refelct the filter. More than one value can be selected using a <CTRL> click.

We can see that the slicer has “No Discount” selected and the table indicates a filter on the Promotion column (note the funnel icon to the right of the column name).

You can have many slicers associated with a table.

I hope you have found this article useful. If you would like to learn more about working in Excel why not take a look at our Excel Training Courses.

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