How to Edit a Pivot Table in Excel

Last Updated on April 25, 2024

Excel is extremely popular amongst businesses because it uses the power of spreadsheets to organize numbers and data with formulas or functions. As a result, more companies are investing in Excel courses to build their employees’ proficiency in this revolutionary tool.

Excel is a powerful tool that allows professionals to analyze, calculate and visualize data. It has become essential to any business operation surrounding finances or numbers. Today, we will be exploring the Pivot Table, and you will understand what a Pivot Table is and how to edit it and maximize productivity.

The Pivot Table Explained

A Pivot Table is a tool that enables users to calculate, summarize, and analyze data. This allows them to easily identify comparisons, patterns, and trends. Users can also learn how to find the max value in Excel. But how can the Pivot Table be used?

Uses for the Pivot Table

Users will organize their data in columns with a single header row to create a Pivot Table. Then, they can go to ‘Insert’ followed by ‘Pivot Table.’ Here, they must create a Pivot Table based on the existing table or range.

Selecting ‘Add this data to the data model’ will also add the table or range used to the workbook’s Data Model. Now, users can select where they want the Pivot Table report to be placed. Selecting a new Worksheet, for example, will create a new one. If they want to add it to a previously created Worksheet, they click on ‘Existing Worksheet,’ and make their selection. Now, all that’s left for them to do is to click ‘OK.’ 

After a user creates a Pivot Table, they might need to edit it at a later point in time. Editing a Pivot Table is easy; we will review how it works. Understanding how all of it works is essential to be proficient in Excel.

Editing the Pivot Table

To edit the Pivot Table, there are a few steps to follow. First, users will open their project by double-clicking on the Excel document containing the Pivot Table in File Explorer or Finder, depending on the operating system being used. 

Now, each user must navigate to the spreadsheet page containing the data for the Pivot Table, click on the tab containing it, and navigate to it. This is where the editing takes place. Users can enter the data they want to add to their Pivot Table directly next to or below the current data.

So, imagine that a spreadsheet has data in cells A1 to E10. The user would add another column in the F column, or another row, in this case, row 11. If they want to change the data within the Pivot Table, they can edit the data here. However, these edits won’t be reflected within the Pivot Table until the data is refreshed. 

Now, the user can navigate to the Pivot Table tab, click on the tab where the Pivot Table is listed, select it, and click on the ‘Analyze’ tab. Here, users select ‘Change Data Source,’ which is an option in the ‘Data’ section in the ‘Analyze’ toolbar mentioned above. 

Afterward, a new drop-down menu will appear in front of them. Each user can click on the ‘Change Data’ source, which will open a new window. In this window, they can select the data, click and drag from the top-right cell in the data group down to the bottom-left cell, and the columns or rows that have been added will be included. Finalize by clicking on ‘OK’ and then ‘Refresh’ the entire page to view your edits. 

All that is left for users now is to do this for any Pivot Table that they need to change the data to and save all of the documents afterward!