Google Sheets is a popular spreadsheet application with a number of useful features. One of them is the ability to create a drop-down list inside any cell or range of cells. Once you’ve added the drop-down list, sharing that Google Sheets document is easy in Google Drive.
One reason to add a list might be to ask users multiple-choice questions, allowing them to choose answers based on their preferences. This can also be used to collect feedback, for example. Whatever your use case, creating a drop-down list and editing it afterwards is super easy in both the web browser and the mobile version of Google Sheets.
Let’s get started.
Create a Drop-Down List in Google Sheets in a Web App
We tested the Edge browser on a Windows machine, and you can use any browser on both Windows and Mac. That said, Google recommends the Chrome browser for best results.
Step 1: Enter plate.new in the address bar to quickly create and open a new Google Sheets document, or open a document from your Google Drive account.
Step 2: Select Data Validation in the Data menu.
Step 3: In the next pop-up, select the criteria that can be ‘List of items’ or ‘List from a range’. The first option means that the user can select an item from a predefined list of items. The second option means that the user can select a list of items from other cells in the same sheet or even other sheets in the same document. we will go with List of items to keep it simple.
Step 4: Next, enter all the items that you want to appear in the comma-separated list only in the second box next to Criteria.
Step 5: Enable the “Show drop-down list in cells” feature to display the drop-down list in the selected cell with a downward arrow, making it easy for users to see that there is a drop-down list in the checked cell .
Step 6: Select Show warning next to “Invalid data” if you want to allow users to enter invalid data (something that is not predefined) but will mark the entered entry to mark it . Select Reject Input to disallow selecting anything that is not predefined.
Step 7: Select ‘Show validation help text’ if you want to add a custom note to help users understand what they have to do with the dropdown. A text box will appear when you select the option to type a note.
Step 8: Click the Save button to finish and check the dropdown directly in the selected cell.
This is what it looks like when you click the downward arrow.
You can now select a predefined item from the drop-down list by clicking the arrow and selecting an item.
In addition, you can import (output) something that is not predefined.
The cell will immediately be flagged with a red icon and a message will appear when you move the mouse pointer over it.
Create a Drop-Down List in Google Sheets in Mobile Apps
The steps for both Android and iOS versions are the same. We will use Android in the example below.
Step 1: Open the Google Sheets app and open/create a new Sheets document. Select the cell where you want to add the drop-down list. Now tap on the three-dot menu icon in the upper right corner and select Data Validation.
Step 2: Select a Criteria for the drop-down list. It can be ‘List of items’ or ‘List from a range’. Then tap the Add button to enter the comma-separated items that you want to appear in the drop-down list.
Step 3: Enable ‘Show drop-down menu in cell’ to display an arrow telling the user that the cell contains a drop-down menu. Enable ‘Show validation help text’ to display a custom message to help users understand what they need to do. When you enable that feature, an Edit button will appear. Click it to add a message.
Step 4: Under ‘On Invalid Data’ heading, select Show warning if you want others to enter something that is not predefined. Select Reject Input if you want to force the user to select one of the items from the list. Tap the Save button when you’re done.
You’ll see an arrow in the bottom corner of the screen when you select the cell containing the drop-down menu. Touch it to select an item from the list that will slide up from the bottom.
If you want to enter a different value instead of a predefined value, tap the keyboard icon and enter your answer.
Just like the web app, entering a response other than the predefined one will flag the box to mark that answer.
Edit or delete the drop-down list in Google Sheets on the web app
The first few steps will remain the same. Select the cell where you added the drop-down list in the Sheet and go to the Data menu > Data Validation. You can now edit the criteria, selected cells and all other options, or just click the Clear Validation button to clear the list. Click the Save button to save the changes.
Note that removing the dropdown removes the validation but does not manually remove the user input.
Edit or remove drop-down lists in Google Sheets on mobile apps
The steps to edit or delete drop-down lists in the Google Sheets mobile app have also not changed. Select the cell containing the drop-down list and from the three-dot menu select Data Validation. Tap Delete Rule to delete the list, or edit it as you see fit.
The drop-down list is very interesting
Creating and managing drop-down lists in Google Sheets is pretty easy. It takes less than a few minutes to create a list, but a lot will also depend on the number of items. And if you’ve set the criteria to ‘List from a range’, that might take more time.
You can also collaborate with other users on the same Google Sheets document by allowing multiple users to edit the same document. This will save you valuable time, especially if several drop-down lists are involved or there is too much data to parse.
Categories: How to
Source: thpttranhungdao.edu.vn/en/
