Excel Check Boxes, Even Simpler Way

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Add check-boxes to Excel - Form ControlsIn how to get tickmarks in excel, Jon (the Peltier, not the Stewart) commented,

[…] Better yet, use real checkboxes, so the user can change them with the mouse.

That got me thinking,

  • Who is this user we keep talking about 😕
  • Why not ?!?

In excel, you can add a check-box to spreadsheet using developer tools. See to the right:

But what if you needed a whole bunch of check-boxes?

Well, you could add one check box and copy paste the same a bunch of times. Only problem will be, all of them will refer to the same cell. Thus you check one, you check all. Checking out all might be a good option if you are in a party without a date. But, in excel, you need to be a bit more specific, no?

excel-check-boxesSo, I created a bunch of check boxes, each linked to one separate cell. And now, being the good, caring and lovable person I am, I have placed them for download. So go ahead and get your bunch of check boxes, while the supplies last.

Once you have the file, all you need to do is, copy paste as many check boxes to your workbook as you want (there are a total of 30 in there). Change the display text to whatever fancies you at the moment. And you are good to go.

Download the excel check boxes here.

*

I can imagine 2 colleagues in a cube farm talking,

Colleague 1: Wtf, the checkboxes don’t work.
Colleague 2: Didnt you get them from Chandoo.org?
Colleague 1: No, I added them myself.
Colleague 2: No wonder 😛

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13 Responses to “Data Validation using an Unsorted column with Duplicate Entries as a Source List”

  1. Vipul says:

    Pivot Table will involve manual intervention; hence I prefer to use the 'countif remove duplicate trick' along with 'text sorting formula trick; then using the offset with len to name the final range for validation.

  2. Rich says:

    if using the pivot table, set the sort to Ascending, so the list in the validation cell comes back alphabetically.

  3. Kieranz says:

    Hui: Brillant neat idea.
    Vipul: I am intrigued by what you are saying. Please is it possible to show us how it can be done, because as u said Hui's method requires user intervention.
    Thks to PHD and all
    K

  4. sam says:

    Table names dont work directly inside Data validation.
    You will have to define a name and point it to the table name and then use the name inside validation
    Eg MyClient : Refers to :=Table1[Client]
    And then in the list validation say = MyClient

  5. Vipul says:

    Kieranz,
    Pls download the sample here http://cid-e98339d969073094.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/.Public/data-validation-unsorted-list-example.xls
    Off course there are many other ways of doing the same and integrating the formulae in multiple columns into one.

  6. Vipul says:

    Pls refer to column FGHI in that file. Cell G4 is where my validation is.

  7. Kieranz says:

    Vipul:
    Many thks, will study it latter.
    Rgds
    K

  8. [...] to chandoo for the idea of getting unique list using Pivot tables.  What we do is that create a pivot table [...]

  9. Playercharlie says:

    @Vipul:

    Thanks, that was awesome! 🙂

  10. Vipul says:

    @Playercharlie Happy to hear that 🙂

  11. Enrique says:

    Great contribution, Hui. Solved a problem of many years!

  12. FARIS says:

    Thanks to you, A LOT

  13. Mohamed says:

    Hi Hui,
    Greeting
    hope you are doing well.
    I'm interested to send you a private vba excel file which i need to show detail of pivot in new workbook instead of showing in same workbook as new sheet.

    Please contact me on muhammed.ye@gmail.com

    Best Regards

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