Turning Off Automatic Sorting in PivotTables

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated May 7, 2022)

When Katara creates a PivotTable, Excel automatically sorts the data that appears in the PivotTable. She would rather not have the data sorted at all—it is just fine in the data range on which she's basing the PivotTable. Katara wonders if there is any way to turn off the automatic sorting.

Automatic sorting can be turned off by taking advantage of a setting that is (honestly) not that easy to find. Follow these steps:

  1. Create your PivotTable as you normally would.
  2. Click the down-arrow at the right of the Column Labels cell or the Row Labels cell, depending on whether you want to affect column or row sorting. Excel displays some options.
  3. Choose More Sort Options. Excel displays the Sort dialog box.
  4. At the bottom left of the dialog box click More Options. Excel displays the More Sort Options dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

    5. Figure 1. The More Sort Options dialog box.

  5. Clear the first checkbox in the dialog box (Sort Automatically Every Time the Report is Updated).
  6. Click OK to dismiss the More Sort Options dialog box. Excel again displays the Sort dialog box.
  7. Click OK to dismiss the Sort dialog box.

If you would like to explore additional PivotTable sorting capabilities, you might find this web page, by Debra Dalgleish, to be helpful:

https://www.contextures.com/excel-pivot-table-sorting.html

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (12880) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Excel in Office 365.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Pasting a Graphic to Multiple Worksheets

Do you need to add a logo or other graphic to a bunch of worksheets? Here are a couple of short macros that can make ...

Discover More

Preparing Files for a Commercial Printer

Sometimes you may want to send Word documents to a commercial printer for professional mass production. Doing this ...

Discover More

Averaging Based on Multiple Criteria

When you need to determine an average based on a very small selection of cells from a large dataset, based on multiple ...

Discover More

Save Time and Supercharge Excel! Automate virtually any routine task and save yourself hours, days, maybe even weeks. Then, learn how to make Excel do things you thought were simply impossible! Mastering advanced Excel macros has never been easier. Check out Excel 2010 VBA and Macros today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Default Formatting for PivotTables

Wish there was a way to define how you want PivotTables formatted before you actually create the PivotTable? You may be ...

Discover More

Bogging Down with Calculated Items

Create a complex PivotTable and you may find that your system slows to a crawl. The reason for this may be due to the way ...

Discover More

PivotTable Aggregating Incorrect Data

PivotTables can be a great tool for analyzing large amounts of data. If you have a PivotTable that is pulling information ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is nine minus 5?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the ribbon interface (Excel 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the menu interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2022 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.