Pivot tables are one of the most helpful tools in Microsoft Excel. I literally use it everyday for the various projects I work on. One of the crucial steps when working with a Pivot Table is to update your source range. Updating a source range is needed when new data is added. This is an easy step to forget when you are working on multiple time sensitive projects. There are two ways to get around this issue. The first technique is to transform the source range into a table. A table is a way to tag a group of cells in Excel. To change a group of rows and columns to a table do the following:
1. Click Insert
2. Click Table
3. Specify the data range of the table
4. Click Ok
5. The source range has been transformed into an official Excel table
The next step would be to create a pivot table and specify the table range. Excel will automatically recognize that this is a special “table”. Now any additional rows or columns you add to the table will be automatically carried to the pivot table. All you have to do is refresh the pivot table. Tables are handy tools which have other benefits as well. We will share another approach on how to automatically update a source range in our upcoming class. Register here.
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