This way, text and numbers won't appear in the destination cells, so it doesn't seem like an entry was already selected. If it shows a text or number entry, press Delete to clear it. To use this drop-down list in other locations, copy it to other cells. Verify the cell contains a drop-down list with the options provided by the cell range. The range must be a single row or column, and click OK. It can be on a different worksheet, as in this example, giving you greater flexibility in configuring and protecting the worksheets.

To provide the options in your drop-down list, click in Source and select the cell range that contains the options. Leave Ignore blank selected we'll cover this in the next video. Leave In-cell drop-down selected this enables a drop-down list in the cell. In the Data Validation dialog, set Allow to List this enables a list in the cell. Select a cell where you want a drop-down list.Ĭlick the DATA tab, and click Data Validation. To avoid the problem, let's use a cell range for the entries in the drop-down list. This can be a problem when someone types an entry instead of picking it from the list.įor example, typing YES in all capital letters returns an error, if error messages are enabled, which is the default. We'll cover managing drop-down lists in video 4.Ī comma-delimited list is also case sensitive. If you need to change the list entries, such as adding and deleting entries, this type of drop-down list is more time consuming to manage. You might use such a list if there are just a few values, and they are unlikely to change. We used a comma-delimited list in the previous video.

You can always ask an expert in the Excel Tech Community or get support in Communities.You can use a comma-delimited list, a cell range, or a named range to define the options in a drop-down list. To delete a drop-down list, see Remove a drop-down list. If you decide you want to change the options in your drop-down list, see Add or remove items from a drop-down list. For example, you might want to check to see if Change the column width and row height to show all your entries. If you don’t want a message to show up, clear the check box.Īfter you create your drop-down list, make sure it works the way you want. If you want a message to pop up when someone enters something that's not in your list, check the Show Alert checkbox, pick an option in Type, and type a title and message. If you don’t want a message to show up, clear the check box. If you want a message to pop up when the cell is selected, check the Show message checkbox, and type a title and message in the boxes (up to 225 characters). You can also just type a list of entries in the Source box, separated by a comma like this: Just include the cells that should appear in the drop-down. If you already made a table with the drop-down entries, select in the Source box, and then select and drag the cells that contain those entries. Go to the Data tab on the Ribbon, then select Data Validation. Select the cell in the worksheet where you want the drop-down list. Now is a good time to Sort your data in the order you want it to appear in your drop-down list. Why should you put your data in a table? When your data is in a table, then as you add or remove items from the list, any drop-downs you based on that table automatically update. To stop people from entering data that isn’t in the drop-down list, select Stop. Information will show a message with this icon and Warning will show a message with this icon. To show a message that doesn’t stop people from entering data that isn’t in the drop-down list, select Information or Warning. Not sure which option to pick in the Style box? If you want a message to pop up when someone enters something that's not in your list, check the Show error alert after invalid data is entered box, pick an option from the Style box, and type a title and message. If you want a message to pop up when the cell is selected, check the Show input message when cell is selected box, and type a title and message in the boxes (up to 225 characters). If it’s OK for people to leave the cell empty, check the Ignore blank box. Note that we left out the header row, because we don't want that to be a selection option: We put ours on a sheet called Cities, in range A2:A9. Select in the Source box, then select your list range. On the Settings tab, in the Allow box, select List.

Unlock specific areas of a protected workbook or stop sharing the worksheet, and then try step 3 again. Note: If you can’t select Data Validation, the worksheet might be protected or shared.

Create drop downs in excel