Excel Tables

A table is structure that allows you to conveniently analyze data and generate professional looking reports. Using Excel for data analysis by introducing Excel tables, or what Excel used to call lists. When you want to analyze data with Excel, you want that data stored in a table.

Excel tables have a number of advantages over ordinary worksheet data:

They grow and shrink dynamically
As you fill data into adjacent rows and columns, the table grows to include the new cells. And as a table changes size, any formulas that use the table adjust themselves accordingly. In other words, if you have a formula that calculates the sum of a column in a table, the range that the SUM( ) function uses expands when you add a new record to the table.

They have built-in smarts
You can quickly select rows and columns, apply a custom sort order, and search for important records.

They excel (ahem) at dealing with large amounts of information
If you need to manage vast amounts of information, you may find ordinary worksheet data a little cumbersome. If you put the same information in a table, you can simply apply custom filtering, which means you see only the records that interest you.

In this tutorial, you'll learn more about what, exactly, a structured table is, how to create one, and how to make use of all its features and frills.