# Pivot tables > Summarise a long list in a few lines. Group rows by one column, optionally spread them across another, and total, count or average the figures. Source: https://plexiidesk.com/help/sheets-pivot-tables Section: Office > PlexiiSheets Plans: All plans Updated: 2026-10-15 A pivot table turns a long list into a short summary. Pick the column to group by, the figures to add up and how to add them up, and PlexiiSheets builds a table with one line for each group and a grand total underneath. Add a second column to spread the groups across, and each line breaks down into columns too. Use one when a list has grown too long to read: sales by region, hours by person, spending by category. ## Before you start - Pivot tables are on every plan. - Open a spreadsheet in PlexiiSheets, or click inside a Spreadsheet widget on a desk. See [PlexiiSheets overview](https://plexiidesk.com/help/sheets-overview). - Your list needs a heading row: the first row of the cells you select gives the names the pivot table uses. - Each row below the headings should be one record, such as one sale, with the figures in a column of their own. ## Make a pivot table 1. Select the whole list, from the first heading to the last figure. Drag across it, or click the first cell and `Shift`-click the last. 2. Click the pivot table button on the toolbar (**Pivot table from the selection**), or choose **Insert** > **Pivot table**. The **Pivot table** window opens and shows the range it will summarise. 3. Under **Rows**, choose the column to group by, such as Region. 4. Under **Columns**, choose a second column to spread the groups across, such as Quarter, or leave it at **(none)**. 5. Under **Values**, choose the column of figures, such as Amount. 6. Under **Summarise**, choose how to combine them: **sum**, **count**, **avg** (average), **min** or **max**. 7. Click **Create pivot**. Each list in the window shows the columns in your selection, by the names in the sheet's column headings. To close the window without making anything, click **×** or click outside it. ## What you see The pivot table appears below the sheet, in a card of its own: - **The title** says what it shows, such as "sum of Amount", using the heading from the first row of your selection. - **The first column** lists each value from the **Rows** column once, sorted A to Z, and numbers in number order. - **One column for each value** of the **Columns** column, if you chose one. - **Total** (or **Count**) at the end of each line, for the whole group. - **Grand total** on the last line. An empty value is shown as **(blank)**. Results are shown to at most two decimal places. The pivot table reads the sheet every time it draws, so it keeps up when you change, add or correct a figure inside the range. ### How the figures are read - Commas, spaces, dollar signs and percent signs are ignored, so 1,200 and $1,200 both count as 1200. - With **sum**, **avg**, **min** and **max**, a value that is not a number is left out. - **count** counts every row in the group, whatever is in its **Values** cell. - A cell with a formula counts by its result. ## Filter a pivot table with its slicers When the **Rows** column, or the **Columns** column, has more than one value, the card shows a slicer above the table: a box of tick boxes headed by the column's name, one for each value. - Untick a value to leave its rows out of the pivot table, totals included. - Tick it again to bring it back. Your choices are saved with the sheet. The slicer always lists every value, so you can bring back anything you have left out. ## Change or remove a pivot table - **Remove it:** click **×** (**Remove pivot**) at the top right of the card. The list itself is not touched. Undo brings the pivot table back. - **Change it:** remove it and make it again with different choices. Each pivot table belongs to the sheet tab you made it on. > **Tip:** > A pivot table keeps the range you selected when you made it, such as A1:D40. If you add records after the end of that range, make the pivot table again with the longer list selected so it takes them in. ## Tips - **Tidy the list first.** Trailing spaces and different spellings make separate groups. A query can trim and tidy a column for you. See [Shape data with queries](https://plexiidesk.com/help/sheets-queries). - **Need a filtered list instead?** To see the records themselves rather than totals, filter the sheet. See [Sort and filter](https://plexiidesk.com/help/sheets-sort-and-filter). ## Common questions **The pivot table shows "Col 1" or a figure as a heading.** The first row of your selection was not the heading row. Remove the pivot table, select again starting from the headings, and make it again. **Two groups look the same.** Their values differ slightly, such as a trailing space or a capital letter. Make the values match and the groups merge. **A total is lower than I expected.** Some values are not numbers, so they are left out of **sum**. Check for words or symbols typed in with the figures. **Does the pivot table go into an exported Excel file?** The .xlsx file holds your cells, formulas and formatting. Pivot tables stay in PlexiiSheets. See [Import and export Excel and CSV files](https://plexiidesk.com/help/sheets-excel-csv-import-export). ## Related tasks - [PlexiiSheets overview](https://plexiidesk.com/help/sheets-overview) - [Charts and sparklines in a sheet](https://plexiidesk.com/help/sheets-charts-and-sparklines) - [Sort and filter](https://plexiidesk.com/help/sheets-sort-and-filter) - [Shape data with queries](https://plexiidesk.com/help/sheets-queries) - [Spreadsheet widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-spreadsheet)