How to Create a Drop Down List in Excel (the Only Guide You Need) Show
FREE EXCEL TIPS EBOOK - Click here to get your copy A drop-down list is an excellent way to give the user an option to select from apre-defined list. It can be used while getting a user to fill a form,or while creating interactive Excel dashboards. Drop-down lists are quite common on websites/apps and are very intuitive for the user. Watch Video – Creating a Drop Down List in Excel In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to create a drop down list in Excel (it takes only a few seconds to do this) along with all the awesome stuff you can do with it. This Tutorial Covers:
Working with your drop-down list
After you create your drop-down list, make sure it works the way you want. For example, you might want to check to see if Change the column width and row height to show all your entries. If the list of entries for your drop-down list is on another worksheet and you want to prevent users from seeing it or making changes, consider hiding and protecting that worksheet. For more information about how to protect a worksheet, see Lock cells to protect them. If you decide you want to change the options in your drop-down list, see Add or remove items from a drop-down list. To delete a drop-down list, see Remove a drop-down list. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Download our examples
You can download an example workbook with multiple data validation examples like the one in this article. You can follow along, or create your own data validation scenarios. Download Excel data validation examples.
Data entry is quicker and more accurate when you restrict values in a cell to choices from a drop-down list.
Start by making a list of valid entries on a sheet, and sort or rearrange the entries so that they appear in the order you want. Then you can use the entries as the source for your drop-down list of data. If the list is not large, you can easily refer to it and type the entries directly into the data validation tool.
See alsoApply data validation to cells
After you create your drop-down list, make sure it works the way you want. For example, you might want to check to see if Change the column width and row height to show all your entries. If you decide you want to change the options in your drop-down list, see Add or remove items from a drop-down list. To delete a drop-down list, see Remove a drop-down list. How to make drop down list allowing free text (manually entry) in Excel?By default, for the cells with created data validation drop down lists, you are not allowed to enter texts beyond the list values. When entering words that do not include in the list, an error dialog box will pop up as the below screenshot shown. This tutorial is going to show you how to make drop down list allowing free text in Excel. Make drop down list allowing free text in Excel Make drop down list allowing free text in ExcelPlease do as follows to make drop down list allowing free text. 1. Select the cells which contain the drop down lists you have already created, and then click Data > Data Validation> Data Validation. See screenshot: 2. In the Data Validation dialog box, uncheck the Show error alert after invalid data is entered box under Error Alert tab, then click the OK button. Then you can enter any text into drop down list cells as you need without getting an error alert. Alternatively, you can keep the Show error alert after invalid data is entered box checked, choose Warning from the Style drop-down list and then click the OK button. After that, when entering a value doesn't match the data validation restrictions defined for a cell, a Microsoft Excel warning dialog will pop up. Click Yes to continue. Easily select multiple items from drop-down list in Excel: Have you ever tried to select multiple items from a drop down list in Excel? Here the Multi-select Drop Down List utility of Kutools for Excel can help you easily select multiple items from the drop-down list in a range, current worksheet, current workbook or all workbooks. See below demo: Related articles:Autocomplete when typing in Excel drop down list Create drop down list from another workbook in Excel Create a searchable drop down list in Excel Auto populate other cells when selecting values in Excel drop down list More tutorial for drop down list... The Best Office Productivity ToolsKutools for Excel Solves Most of Your Problems, and Increases Your Productivity by 80%
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How to Create Drop-down Lists in Cells – Data Validation ListsAugust 8, 2018 21 comments Bottom Line: The complete Excel guide on how to create drop-down lists in cells (data validation lists). Includes keyboard shortcuts to select items, copying drop-downs to other cells, handling invalid inputs, updating lists with new items, and more. Skill Level: Beginner |