Dynamic Data Validation with Tables in Excel
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Why is Excel returning an error message? Why doesn’t my formula work? What did I do wrong?
The answer to these common questions may surprise you.
Many spreadsheets I’ve come across have a common problem – inconsistent data entry. If someone enters “United States of America” in a cell, “United States of America ” (extra space after “United” and “America”) in another cell, and then wishes to use “United States of America” as a formula criteria, functions such as SUMIFS and VLOOKUP won’t work properly as “United States of America” was not entered consistently throughout each area of the workbook.
A great way of preventing this problem is to restrict the values that can be inputted into a cell via Data Validation. For example, if your company is currently selling to Australia, Thailand, New Zealand and China, you can enter these values as a list into one section of your workbook, and then use Data Validation to prevent misspelled and other variants of these country names from being entered into a cell.
Data Validation is a great tool, but what happens next month if your company starts selling to Indonesia and Russia? How do you automatically extend data validation into subsequent rows of your data entry table to avoid errors? The best way to solve this problem is with dynamic ranges and tables.
Here’s how to do this (file available via the link belowto follow along):
Step 1: Transform Your Data into Tables
If you’ve never used the Excel table feature before, you’re missing out! Excel tables are essential for dealing with large, complicated spreadsheets and help tremendously when dealing with Excel add-ins such as Power Query and Power Pivot.
Begin by selecting your data set (Ctrl + A) and then press Ctrl + T to turn the data into an Excel table. Then click on the Table Name box and give your table a sensible name with no spaces i.e. tblSalesData (“tbl” for Table). Repeat this process for your data validation list.
Step 2: Create a Defined Name
Go to your data validation table and highlight the column that will contain your data validation values (Ctrl + Spacebar). Go to Formulas/Name Manager or Ctrl + F3 to open the Name Manager.
Click the “New” button. Enter an appropriate name, such as ddCountries (dd for “dropdown”). Note that the “Refers to:” box is referring to every item in the data validation column with table formula nomenclature (table name followed by column name in square brackets). Click OK.
Step 3: Add Data Validation
Select the column in your data entry table that you wish to add data validation to. Go to Data/Data Validation or Alt + D + L to open the Data Validation window. Select “List” from the “Allow” dropdown menu.
In the “Source” box, hit the F3 key and select your defined name from the “Paste Name” box. Click OK twice to return to the main screen.
Now every cell in the column will contain data validation that is restricted to the values in the “Data Validation List” column. If you add another row to the Data Validation table, this will automatically appear in the drop down menus you have just created. New rows added to the revenue table will also include data validation for these values by default.
For additional fun, you can add additional tables with data validation to cycle among formula values.
If you found this interesting you may want to explore how to create a dependent validation drop down. Find out how here.
FAQs
Dynamic Data Validation with Tables in Excel - Access Analytic? ›
Select the column in your data entry table that you wish to add data validation to. Go to Data/Data Validation or Alt + D + L to open the Data Validation window. Select “List” from the “Allow” dropdown menu. In the “Source” box, hit the F3 key and select your defined name from the “Paste Name” box.
Can you make Data Validation list dynamic? ›In Excel, you can validate dynamic data using a dynamic drop down list. This is done by selecting the source for the drop down list as the range where new dynamic data will be added later.
Can I use a table in a Data Validation Excel? ›Using Tables
With Tables, you can have as many as you want on the same worksheet. This being the case, you can have your data validation entries in a series of single column tables on a sheet, as opposed to having them as separate columns in a single Table.
- Get items for the main drop down list. For starters, we shall extract all different fruit names from column A. ...
- Create the main drop down. ...
- Get items for the dependent drop down list. ...
- Make the dependent drop down.
Select a cell where you want to create the drop down list. Go to Data –> Data Tools –> Data Validation. In the Data Validation dialogue box, within the Settings tab, select List as the Validation criteria. As soon as you select List, the source field appears.
How to create dynamic Data Validation list based on data table? ›Begin by selecting your data set (Ctrl + A) and then press Ctrl + T to turn the data into an Excel table. Then click on the Table Name box and give your table a sensible name with no spaces i.e. tblSalesData (“tbl” for Table). Repeat this process for your data validation list.
How do you create a dynamic validation? ›- We can use OFFSET function to make dynamic data validation list.
- Press ALT + D + L.
- From Settings tab; click on Allow.
- In Source box, enter the following formula.
- =OFFSET($A$2,,,COUNTA($A:$A)-1)
Open the table for which you want to validate records. On the Fields tab, in the Field Validation group, click Validation, and then click Record Validation Rule. Use the Expression Builder to create the rule.
How do I create a data validation list from a table? ›Select the cell in the worksheet where you want the drop-down list. Go to the Data tab on the Ribbon, then click Data Validation . On the Settings tab, in the Allow box, click List . If it's OK for people to leave the cell empty, check the Ignore blank box.
What is dynamic dropdown? ›Drop-down Menu: Dynamic Select. The drop-down menu is a clear method of showing a list of data, allowing users to pick their choice from the list. This field can be categorized into two types based on the choice of selection types offered.
How do I dynamically populate a dropdown? ›
To add a dropdown list dynamically, you would need to create the HTML <select> element, its label and optionally a <br> tag. In pure JavaScript, you can use the document. createElement() method to programmatically create a dropdown list. Then you can call the Node's appendChild() method or jQuery's .
How do I get dynamic data from dropdown? ›- Declare HTML Select Wrapper Element.
- Create JavaScript Object Model.
- Add Options Dynamically To Select Element.
- Attach Change Event To Select Drop Down List.
The Pivot Table option can create dynamic Tables in Excel. For this, select the complete data to be included in Dynamic Table and then click on the Pivot Table option under the Insert menu tab or press the shortcut ALT + N + V simultaneously to apply it.
Can I use unique function in Data Validation? ›Microsoft Excel's Data Validation feature provides an easy way to create a dropdown at the sheet level. If you base the list on data, you'll probably want a list of unique items, which is easily accomplished thanks to Microsoft Excel's UNIQUE() dynamic array function.
How to create DataTable dynamically? ›- DataTable mytable=new DataTable(); //creating datatable.
- DataRow dr=mytable.NewRow(); //Creating Row.
- dr["ColunmName"]="Raj"; //assigning value to the row.
- mytable.Rows.add(dr); //adding to datatable.
- var table = document. getElementById('emptbl');
- var rowCount = table. rows. ...
- var row = table. insertRow(rowCount);
- for(var i =0; i <= cellCount; i++){ }
- var rowCount = table. rows. ...
- if(rowCount > '2'){ }
- var row = table.deleteRow(rowCount-1); rowCount--;
Dynamically Add Validators
We need to listen to optionB value changes and based on that we add or remove the validators we require. We also call the control's updateValueAndValidity() method, as we need to recalculate the value and validation status of the control.
Automated data validation is faster and more accurate than manual methods. Automated data validation tools catch more existing errors and eliminate human error. Automating data validation standardizes and streamlines the data pipeline, ensures high-quality data while reducing costs.
How do I create a reactive form validation? ›Reactive forms deliver a model-driven approach to managing form inputs, the values of which change with respect to time. Because reactive forms are built on a component class, Angular reactive form validation happens by adding validator functions directly to the form control model in the component class.
How do you validate two tables? ›Compare two tables by using joins. To compare two tables by using joins, you create a select query that includes both tables. If there is not already an existing relationship between the tables on the fields that contain the corresponding data, you create a join on the fields that you want to examine for matches.
Why would you want to consider using data validation in your table? ›
Data validation provides accuracy, cleanness, and completeness to the dataset by eliminating data errors from any project to ensure that the data is not corrupted. While data validation can be performed on any data, including data within a single application such as Excel creates better results.
How do you add criteria to a table in Access? ›To add criteria to an Access query, open the query in Design view and identify the fields (columns) you want to specify criteria for. If the field is not in the design grid, double-click the field to add it to the design grid and then enter the criterion in the Criteria row for that field.
How do you Create an Autoform based on a table in Access? ›In the Navigation Pane, click the table or query that contains the data that you want to see on the form. On the Create tab, in the Forms group, click Form. Access creates the form and displays it in Layout view. In Layout view, you can make design changes to the form while it is displaying data.
What should we specify validation rules while creating a table? ›Answer: By Validation Rules, you can ensure that the correct value is entered into the field. If the user makes an incorrect entry, error alerts can stop the user, provide a warning or just provide information.
Which Data Validation type is used to create a list? ›Use a Delimited List. Notes: This method of Data Validation is case sensitive -- if a user types YES, an error alert will be displayed. Space characters can be typed before or after the valid items, and no error message is displayed, e.g. " Yes " would be allowed.
What is the difference between dropdown and dynamic dropdown? ›The Static Dropdown is for cases when you, as a form author, want to provide, ahead of time, in Form Builder, the list of all the different choices users will be able to choose from. This is in contrast with the Dynamic Dropdown where the list of choices will be loaded at runtime from a service you provide.
How do you create a dynamic list? ›- Go to Formulas ➜ Defined Names ➜ Name Manager ➜ Click New.
- In the name input box enter a name for the named range (Here I am using “monthList2003”).
- Enter the below formula in “Refers To” and click OK.
The following terms are important to understand as you read this article: A standard list box is a box containing a list of multiple items, with multiple items visible. A drop-down list is a list in which the selected item is always visible, and the others are visible on demand by clicking a drop-down button.
How do I create an automated drop down list in Excel? ›- Select the cells that you want to contain the lists.
- On the ribbon, click DATA > Data Validation.
- In the dialog, set Allow to List.
- Click in Source, type the text or numbers (separated by commas, for a comma-delimited list) that you want in your drop-down list, and click OK.
For all your empty cells, enter just a single empty character. Select a cell, hit the space bar, get out of the cell, and copy that value down. Now, your empty cells technically aren't empty because they contain a space. And by doing so, the drop down list now starts from the top again.
What is dynamic data validation in Excel? ›
Dynamic Data Validation. The data validation tool in Excel is a wonderful feature that can help you quickly select an item from a list. However, if the list is growing over time, then you will want the data validation to be dynamic and expand to accommodate the growing list.
What are the two methods of data validation? ›Data Type Validation: This technique checks if the data entered into the system is of the correct data type, such as a string, integer, or date. Range Validation: This technique checks if the data entered into the system falls within a specific range of values, such as a customer's age between 18 and 65 years old.
What is dynamic range for table in Excel? ›A dynamic range will automatically expand or contract, if new columns or rows of data are added, or data is removed. You can base a pivot table on the dynamic range. Then, when you refresh the pivot table, it will include all of the data in the range, even if new rows or columns have been added.
What are dynamic tables? ›What are Dynamic Tables? Dynamic Tables are a new table type in Snowflake that lets teams use simple SQL statements to declaratively define the result of your data pipelines. Dynamic Tables also automatically refresh as the data changes, only operating on new changes since the last refresh.
How to copy data from one sheet to another in Excel dynamically? ›- Open two spreadsheets containing the same simple dataset.
- In sheet 1, select a cell and type Ctrl + C / Cmd + C to copy it.
- In sheet 2, right-click on the equivalent cell and go to the Paste > Link.
- Click the Data tab, then the Data Validation menu and select Data Validation.
- Click the Allow: drop-down button and select Custom as Validation criteria.
- Enter the following in the Formula bar: =COUNTIF(C$3:C$7,C3)<2.
- Tweak one of the formulas according to your dataset.
- Enter the formula in the first cell of the unique list (B2 in this example).
- If you are using the array formula, press Ctrl + Shift + Enter. ...
- Copy the formula down as far as needed by dragging the fill handle.
Re: Conditional Formatting with Data Validation
On the Home tab of the ribbon, select Conditional Formatting > New Rule... Select 'Use a formula to determine which cells to format'. Activate the Fill tab.
Now to create a drop-down list that auto-updates Click on the cell and click on data validation, then in the pop-up list, select "Allow" and enter the formula as =OFFSET($A$2,0,0,COUNTA(A:A)-1) in the source text box and click "OK."
How do I dynamically display a dropdown list? ›To add a dropdown list dynamically, you would need to create the HTML <select> element, its label and optionally a <br> tag. In pure JavaScript, you can use the document. createElement() method to programmatically create a dropdown list. Then you can call the Node's appendChild() method or jQuery's .
How do you create a data validation rule in access? ›
Open the table for which you want to validate records. On the Fields tab, in the Field Validation group, click Validation, and then click Record Validation Rule. Use the Expression Builder to create the rule.
Can you autofill Data Validation? ›Dropdown lists are a handy way to make data entry and validation more efficient in Excel. We've now added AutoComplete functionality, which automatically compares the text typed in a cell to all items in the dropdown list and displays only the items that match.
How do I create a Data Validation list from a table? ›Select the cell in the worksheet where you want the drop-down list. Go to the Data tab on the Ribbon, then click Data Validation . On the Settings tab, in the Allow box, click List . If it's OK for people to leave the cell empty, check the Ignore blank box.
How do you validate data automatically? ›The first step in automating data validation and quality checks is to define your data quality rules. These are the criteria that your data must meet to be considered valid and high-quality. For example, you might have rules for data format, completeness, uniqueness, accuracy, timeliness, or consistency.
Can you create a dynamic list in Excel? ›The best method to create a dynamic drop-down list is using an Excel table for source data. Here are the simple steps to create a dynamic drop-down list in Excel. First of all, change your normal range into a table. Select your list.
How do I create a dynamic drop-down list in Excel without blanks? ›For all your empty cells, enter just a single empty character. Select a cell, hit the space bar, get out of the cell, and copy that value down. Now, your empty cells technically aren't empty because they contain a space. And by doing so, the drop down list now starts from the top again.