The One Table approach stores all drop-down choices (for both the primary and secondary drop-downs) in a single table, but, the formulas are the hardest to set up initially. INDIRECT – easiest formulas volatile includes blank choices.Two Tables – easier formulas harder ongoing data management nonvolatile.One Table – hardest formulas easiest ongoing data management nonvolatile removes blank choices.Please check out this post for more information. Another option is available in versions of Excel that include dynamic array functions and spill ranges.Please check out the Slicers post for more information. Beginning with Excel 2013 for Windows, we can use Slicers as an easier alternative to the solutions presented below.This post explores three such solutions, and if you have a preferred approach, please post a comment, I’d love to hear about it! OverviewĪs with just about anything in Excel, there are several ways to achieve the goal. Your browser can’t show this frame.This post explores macro-free methods for using Excel’s data validation feature to create an in-cell drop-down that displays choices depending on the value selected in a previous in-cell drop-down. To see a demonstration of the 3 types of drop down lists, you can watch this Drop Down Lists video.

If users don’t want to use the combo box, they can simply click on the arrow in the cell, and use the data validation list. When a user double-clicks on a data validation cell, the combo box appears, and displays the data validation list for the selected cell.

There’s only one combo box, hidden at the top of the worksheet, and bit of programming makes the combo box appear when needed. To make the most of the data validation features, while allowing font changes, autocomplete and more rows, I sometimes combine data validation with a combo box. This combo box can also be linked to a worksheet cell, and the value is entered in that cell, when you select an item from the list.Īlso, you can type in the combo box, and the text autocompletes as you type, finding the first matching item in the list. If you know that a worksheet will be zoomed most of the time, you can use a larger font, to make the list easier to read. You can set the properties, such as font, font size, number of rows, and even include multiple columns. This is similar to the Forms Control combo box, but has more properties that you can adjust.Īfter you insert a combo box, right-click the combo box, and click Properties. In this example, the INDEX function returns a month name from the MonthList named range, from the row number (2) for the selected month (February).Īnother drop down list option is to use an ActiveX combo box. To show the item name, instead of the item number, you can use an INDEX function in another cell. In the screen shot above, February was selected, and a 2 is entered in cell D5. That item’s index number (its position in the list) is entered in the linked cell. The font size can’t be changed though, so the list would be hard to read on a zoomed worksheet.Īlso, you can’t type in the box, so click the arrow, then select an item from the list. The drop down arrow is always visible, so the Form Control combo box is easy for users to find on the worksheet. You can also link the combo box to a cell, so the selected item number appears on the worksheet. You can adjust the number of drop down lines in the Form Control Combo box, so you can show all 12 months, without a scroll bar. It gives you a bit more control over the appearance of the drop down list. Instead of using data validation, you could use a Form Control Combo Box. You can’t change those settings, but you can colour the data entry cells, to make them obvious to the worksheet users. only the active cell shows a drop down arrow.We’ll compare these types of Excel drop down lists:ĭata validation is a great feature, and you can use creative formulas to create flexible lists, such as dependent drop down lists. There are other ways to create a drop down list though, and one of those options might work better in your worksheet. Unfortunately, there’s no way to make the font size bigger, which is one of the drawbacks of a data validation drop down list. Sometimes the font in a data validation drop down is so small that you can barely read the list. It had some limitations, so here are 3 types of Excel drop down lists compared.Īt my client’s office, the worksheet was zoomed to 75%, so we could see more of the data, and the person watching over my shoulder asked, “How can you even read that?” At a client’s office last week, I was selecting a pricing option from a data validation drop down list.

Excel for mac 2011 drop down list