#Add a drop down list in excel how to#
#Add a drop down list in excel manual#
#Add a drop down list in excel full#

To create each list, you'll do three things: The main list has produce types, and the other two lists have items for the dependent drop downs. Next, you'll create lists with items for the drop down lists.

Insert a new sheet in the workbook, and name that sheet 'Lists'.

Change the name for Sheet1 to 'DataEntry'.This example will have a workbook with two sheets - a data entry sheet, and a sheet with lists. There are a few steps for setting up the drop down lists, and the details are in the sections below. Then, in column C, a dependent drop down list show items for the selected product type only.Select a produce type (fruit or vegetable) in column B.In the screen shot below, you can see the completed data entry sheet. This example uses Fruit and Vegetable lists. Here are the step-by-step instructions for making dependent drop down lists in Excel.

#Add a drop down list in excel full#

The video, and the full transcript is on the Dependent Drop Down Lists Video page.

#Add a drop down list in excel how to#

In this short video, you'll see how to set up a main drop down list, with a dependent drop down list in the next column. There are setup instructions and a video in the sections below. In cell C4, the dependent drop down list changed automatically, and now it shows the Vegetable list Next, in cell B4, Vegetable was selected as Produce Type.Fruit was selected as Produce Type in cell B3, and the drop down showed the Fruit list in cell D3.In an Excel dependent drop down list, the list of items changes, depending on the value You can copy-and-paste this drop-down cell to any other cells in your spreadsheet, and you can create as many different drop-downs like this as youвЂ™d like.Download the Sample Files What Is a Dependent Drop Down List?

#Add a drop down list in excel manual#

If they try to enter their own data, theyвЂ™ll receive an error message.ДЄ bit of manual effort to setup, but if youвЂ™re creating an Excel form that you want users to complete, this can save massive amounts of time and ensure that the data you capture is uniform and correct. Your users can now only select from one of the options in the drop-down list. You can only see the drop-downвЂ¦if you click on the cell. If you uncheck this option, Excel still forces users to enter only list values (A1:A4), but it wonвЂ™t present a drop-down list. Make sure the In-Cell Dropdown option is checked. Alternately, you can also enter the reference (=$A$1:$A$4).

(See, theyвЂ™re everywhere.)Д¬lick the Source control to add your cursor, and then drag your mouse to highlight cells A1:A4. (You can position the drop-down list in most any cell or even multiple cells.)В Choose Validation from the Data menu.Д¬hoose List from the Allow optionвЂ™s drop-down list. Next, youвЂ™ll want to select the position of your drop-down list. Similarly, you can enter the items in a single row, such as A1:D1. To get started, youвЂ™ll need to create a list.В Create the list in cells A1:A4. In Excel, the option to create a drop-down list is in the Data Validation feature. Whatever the use case, this is a quick tip for generating drop-down lists to make that data entry just a little bit easier. Sometimes you may want to send out a spreadsheet for your users to fill out, or maybe you find yourself tracking repetitive data and want an easier way to collect information on your own. Why would you want to add a drop-down list to an Excel spreadsheet, and not just create a form or a Power App? Well, you could do that if it better meets your needs - but sometimes you want something quick and easy within the app youвЂ™re working with, and then simply share out a link or, if itвЂ™s within one of the latest versions of Office, do some co-editing. I included in in the October 2019 Productivity Tips webinar, which you can find on the blog, on the CollabTalk YouTube page, or jump to the video tip by clicking here. This is a great tip mentioned in a TechRepublic article ( check it out) that I came across while looking for instructions on how to accomplish this - and I thought IвЂ™d share. In my Productivity Tips webinars with Tom Duff ( we often share tips that come from others within the community, and I always love giving shout-outs to those folks.