How to sort in excel

How do you sort columns in Excel without mixing Data?

Select a cell or range of cells in the column which needs to be sorted. Click on the Data tab available in Menu Bar, and perform a quick sort by choosing any one of the options under the Sort & Filter group, depending upon whether you want to sort in ascending or descending order.

How do I sort multiple columns in Excel?

How do I sort multiple rows independently in Excel?

If you want to sort the table columns independently from each other, click on the Arrange All button in the ribbon toolbar tab Variables. After clicking, the Arrange_All function appears in the sidebar.

How do I sort in Excel and keep formula?

Tip: If there are several references in one cell, you need to change the references one by one by selecting and press F4 key in the formula bar. Then change the references in other formula cells to absolute one by one. Now the formulas are kept while sorting.

How do I sort 3 columns in Excel?

Follow these steps to safely sort by the 3 columns:
  1. Select all the cells in the list. …
  2. On the Excel Ribbon, click the Data tab.
  3. In the Sort & Filter group, click the Sort button.
  4. Click the Add Level button, to add the first sorting level.
  5. From the Sort by dropdown, select the first column you want to sort.

How do I sort a whole spreadsheet by one column?

Select any cell in the data range. On the Data tab, in the Sort & Filter group, click Sort. In the Sort dialog box, under Column, in the Sort by box, select the first column that you want to sort.

Why is my Excel table not sorting properly?

The most common reason for data not sorting correctly is due to the leading space ahead of the text. Many people using encounter this problem. The text with leading space is sorted at the top in ascending and at the bottom in descending order sort. Try correcting this, and it will work.

How do you keep cell reference when sorting?

Best way is to keep your reference data on one side of the sheet and all the formulas on the other side of the sheet. then leave a blank column between them (hide it if you want) an then you’ll be sorting only the reference data keeping the Formula references pointing always at the same place.

How do I fix sorting problems in Excel?

To solve this problem, convert the entire column to text. If you’re sorting by a column containing a formula, Excel will recalculate the column after the sort. If the values change after the recalculation, such as with RAND, it may appear that the sort did not work properly, but it did.

How do I enable sort and filter in Excel?

Click any cell in the range or table. On the HOME tab, click Sort & Filter, and click Filter. Click a drop-down arrow at the top of one of the columns to display its filter options.

Why can’t I sort smallest to largest Excel?

Make sure that you have as many leading Zero’s as needed. Number formatting of the column or leading spaces in the numbers if they have been copied and pasted from another source. Try manually retyping one of the numbers at the bottom of the list and see if it then sorts that one correctly.

Why is Excel not sorting all columns?

Make sure that the headings are only present in the first column. Select the complete table region only. Home tab -> Format Table As -> Choose any of the options and check the heading available when prompted. Try sorting it either ways and it should work for all columns.

Why can’t I sort and filter in Excel?

The most common reason why the Sort and Filter icon is grayed out in Excel is because multiple sheets are selected. … To ensure that you have only one active sheet in order to enable Soft and Filter icon, right click on the sheets and click on Ungroup Sheets. The Sort and Filter icon will now become active.

How do I sort Excel columns from smallest to largest?

How to sort in Excel?
  1. Select a single cell in the column you want to sort.
  2. On the Data tab, in the Sort & Filter group, click. to perform an ascending sort (from A to Z, or smallest number to largest).
  3. Click. to perform a descending sort (from Z to A, or largest number to smallest).

How do I create a drop down sort in Excel?

Follow these steps:
  1. Select the columns to sort. …
  2. In the ribbon, click Data > Sort.
  3. In the Sort popup window, in the Sort by drop-down, choose the column on which you need to sort. …
  4. From the Order drop-down, select Custom List.
  5. In the Custom Lists box, select the list that you want, and then click OK to sort the worksheet.

Why won’t Excel let me sort by cell color?

A more obscure reason is that the spreadsheet is in sharing mode. When this is true then for some reason the filter by color is not useable. To check if you workbook is shared you can go to the REVIEW tab and click on the SHARE WORKBOOK button. … Untick it to switch it off and the filter by colour should reappear.

How do you apply a filter in Excel?

Try it!
  1. Select any cell within the range.
  2. Select Data > Filter.
  3. Select the column header arrow .
  4. Select Text Filters or Number Filters, and then select a comparison, like Between.
  5. Enter the filter criteria and select OK.

How do you use the filter function in Excel?

To filter with search:
  1. Select the Data tab, then click the Filter command. A drop-down arrow will appear in the header cell for each column. …
  2. Click the drop-down arrow for the column you want to filter. …
  3. The Filter menu will appear. …
  4. When you’re done, click OK. …
  5. The worksheet will be filtered according to your search term.

How do I sort a column in Excel?

Sorting levels
  1. Select a cell in the column you want to sort by. …
  2. Click the Data tab, then select the Sort command.
  3. The Sort dialog box will appear. …
  4. Click Add Level to add another column to sort by.
  5. Select the next column you want to sort by, then click OK. …
  6. The worksheet will be sorted according to the selected order.

How do you prioritize a filter in Excel?

To get started, open the filter menu and go to Sort by Color > Custom Sort. Use the options here to sort the cell colors in the order you want them (if you need a refresher, check out our article on sorting). When you have them set up how you’d like, click OK.