Filtering data in Google Sheets is a powerful tool that allows you to view specific information based on criteria you specify. Whether you’re working with a large dataset or simply trying to isolate certain information, mastering the filtering function can greatly enhance your productivity.
This article will guide you through the filtering process in Google Sheets to help get more control over your data. You can watch the video below or continue reading the article.
Below we have discussed:
Also read: How to remove duplicates in Google Sheets?
Use the filter in Google Sheets
Before you can apply filters, ensure your data is organised in a spreadsheet format in Google Sheets. Each column should contain relevant data, and there should be a header row with labels describing each column. Now, follow the steps below to use the filter in Google Sheets:
Step 1: Select the range of cells you want to filter. Alternatively, you can click on a single cell within your data set. After that click on the Data tab in the menu at the top.
Step 2: Then, select the Create a filter option from the dropdown menu.
Step 3: You will notice small filter icons (funnels) appear in the header row of each column. Click on the filter icon in the column you want to filter by.
Step 4: In the menu, there are various options available. You can sort the data in alphabetic order and sort by colour. There are three other filter options:
- Filter by colour
- Filter by condition
- Filter by values
Filter by Colour
Filter by colour does the same thing as Sort by colour option. To know what the Filter by colour does follow the steps below:
Step 1: Click on the Filter by colour then click on the Fill colour option and then choose the colour you want to filter. You can also use the Text colour option to filter the text with colours if you have used text colour in your data.
Step 2: We chose the red colour for this example.
Filter by Condition
To use filter by condition follow the steps below:
Step 1: Click on the Filter by condition option and then click on the dropdown down.
Step 2: There are various options available. You can filter empty and not empty data, text, date and a few more options. For this example we are going to use the Text contains filter.
Step 3: Now, enter the field that you want to filter and then click on the OK button. We are going to filter Tools for this example.
Step 4: As you can see only the Tools category is visible now.
Filter by values
The last filter option is filter by values, to know how to use it follow the steps below:
Step 1: Click on the Filter by values option then remove the checkmark beside the value you want to filter out from the data and keep the values checkmarked that you want to see. After you are done click on the OK button.
Step 2: In this example, we filtered Tools.
Mastering filtering in Google Sheets can significantly streamline your data analysis tasks. Whether you’re managing sales figures, organising project data, or conducting research, knowing how to filter effectively empowers you to uncover valuable insights with ease.
