Tip of the week # 561
8 January 2019


Total the data in a table (Microsoft Excel) *

Excel Tables can be used to store and organise your data, any way you wish. You can use its powerful tools to retrieve information and view and summarise it in numerous ways.
For example, did you know you can quickly total data in the table by turning the optional total row on?

Here's how:

  1. If necessary, format your data as a table. (CTRL + T springs to mind; see tip_429.php)
  2. Put your cursor anywhere in the table.
  3. Press CTRL + SHIFT + T.

The total row is added at the end of the table. Simply use the drop-down arrows at the bottom of each column and find the relevant function, such as Sum or Count.

And guess what ... it's a toggle, so if you press CTRL + SHIFT + T again, you switch the total row off.

By the way, following feedback from course participants I've developed a half-day course to help you understand how to prepare your data and benefit from the powerful Table Tools. Come along on 1 March and save yourself countless hours in calculating and recalculating information. See msexctables.php for the full course outline. (Only GBP97 + VAT.)

Related tips:

  • Tip # 537: How do I know if a table has been filtered? ( tip_537.php )
  • Tip # 525: Select rows and columns in a table ( tip_525.php )
  • Tip # 505: Filter dates by month ( tip_505.php )
  • Tip # 429: Quickly format and enable filtering of your data ( tip_429.php )


* Unless stated otherwise, these tips were written for Microsoft Office 2010.