Microsoft Excel 365 Bible

CHAPTER 24Creating and Using Worksheet Outlines

IN THIS CHAPTER

• Introducing worksheet outlines
• Creating an outline
• Working with outlines

If you use a word processor, you may be familiar with the concept of an outline. Most word processors (including Microsoft Word) have an outline mode that lets you view only the headings and subheadings in your document. You can easily expand a heading to show the text below it. Using an outline makes visualizing the structure of your document easy.

Excel also has outlines. Understanding this feature can make working with certain types of worksheets much easier for you.

Introducing Worksheet Outlines

You'll find that some worksheets are more suitable for outlines than others. You can use outlines to create summary reports that don't show all the details. If your worksheet uses hierarchical data with subtotals, it's probably a good candidate for an outline.

The best way to understand how worksheet outlining works is to look at an example. Figure 24.1 shows a simple sales summary sheet without an outline. Formulas are used to calculate subtotals by region and by quarter.

Figure 24.2 shows the same worksheet after the outline was created by selecting only the rows and using Data ➪ Outline ➪ Group ➪ Auto Outline. Notice that Excel adds a new section to the left of the screen. This section contains outline symbols that enable you to determine which level to view. This particular outline has three levels: States, Regions (each region consists ...