Want to create a table in Excel to organize all your data in one place? Here's how you can make one easily.

Excel tables can quickly give the data in your spreadsheet an organized look and make them easier to manage. Once you format a range of cells as an Excel table, you'll be able to sort and filter the data in them, and use structure references in related formulas.

Creating an Excel table is an easy task, but despite this, Excel tables are a cornerstone of many spreadsheets. Read on to find out how you can create these handy tables in Excel!

Even though an Excel spreadsheets look like big tables, a range of cells is not considered an Excel table until you format them as such. Excel tables consist of a header, which is usually the first row in the table, and the columns under the headers. You can use the header row to filter the data in your Excel table.

Once you format your range of cells as a table, not only you will be able to easily sort and filter the data using the headers, you can also use structure references in the formulas. Structure references are references made to a structure in the table, like a row or a column, rather than a cell.

A formula using structure references can output the results to a structure in the table, so that multiple cells are affected by a single formula. Though this might sound similar to array formulas, the output of a formula with structure references isn't necessarily an array.

Excel tables are similar to Excel data tables in name, but these two are very different. Data tables are a part of Excel's What-if analysis tool kit. You can learn more about Data tables in our article on how the data table in Excel lets you compare results.

Despite its importance, creating a table in Excel is simple. In this example, we have the sales that a number of employees have made in two quarters. The goal is to format the data as an Excel table, and then to calculate the total sales using the SUM function in Excel with structure references.

Voilà! You have an Excel table! You can now use the headers to sort and filter your data in any manner you see fit. However, our job here isn't done yet. It's time to create a formula to calculate the total sales for each employee:

Once you press Enter, Excel will instantly sum the columns and display the results. Note that since you used a reference structure, all the cells were filled automatically.

Excel is a powerful spreadsheet app intended to help you with organizing and analyzing data. Excel tables do exactly that for you, they organize the data and make analysis easier. Using the headers in your table, you can sort and filter your data with just a couple of clicks, and without having to use functions.

Excel tables also grant you the perk of using structure references in your formulas, which can make calculations in mass scale much simpler. Now that you know how to create and use Excel tables, it's time to put this new-gained skilled to use in your spreadsheets!

Amir is a Staff Writer at MUO. His love for writing and organizing everything in spreadsheets took him to mostly write in the Productivity vertical. He likes driving, listening to music, and gaming. He’s currently studying Pharmacy and has been writing articles for more than 4 years.

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