Excel tip: How to create a drop-down list in Excel
What you will learn.
In this video, you will learn how to create a drop-down so you can select from a list without having to retype each time. In this example, we have a simple database with a Department field and will create a list of departments as the drop-down list.
To create a drop-down list:
- Create a new sheet and list all the options in column A. Include the name of the column from the database in A1 (e.g. Department).
- Go to the database and click inside the first cell of the column (e.g. E5).
- Click the Data ribbon > click Data Validation > under Allow select List > select Source and point to the list of options (e.g. sheet named Lists – row 2–6) > click OK.
- Click on the small arrow on the right of the cell to see the list drop-down ready for you to select.
- Copy the list down using Autofill for the drop-down to apply to the entire column.
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