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How to Move Pivot Table Labels

After you build a pivot table, and add fields, you can rearrange the items in one or more of the fields. See three different ways to move labels in a pivot table, to get a different arrangement.

Change Order of Pivot Table Labels

When you add a field to the Row Label or Column Label area of the pivot table, its labels are usually sorted alphabetically.

If you want the labels in a nonalphabetical order, you can manually move them, instead of using the Sort options. The following video shows 3 ways to manually move the labels, and the written instructions are below the video.

TIP: Use can use the same techniques to move pivot fields too. When field names are visible in Outline or Tabular Layout, you can type a field name that isn't in the layout, and it will be added.

Move Pivot Table Labels

This short video shows 3 ways to manually move the labels in a pivot table, and the written instructions are below the video.

Drag a Label

Use Menu Commands

Type over a Label

Drag Labels to New Position

To move a pivot table label to a different position in the list, you can drag it:

1. Click on the label that you want to move
2. Point to the border of the selected cell, and when the pointer changes to a four-headed arrow, drag the cell to its new position. An insertion bar indicates where the label will be dropped

The existing labels shift down, and the moved label takes its new position.

Use Menu Commands to Move Label

To move a pivot table label to a different position in the list, you can use commands in the right-click menu:

1. Right-click on the label that you want to move
2. Click the Move command
3. Click one of the Move subcommands, such as Move [item name] Up

The existing labels shift down, and the moved label takes its new position.

Type Over Another Label

To move a pivot table label to a different position in the list, you can type its name over another label. Read the warning below, before you try this method.

1. Click on the cell where you want a different label to appear
2. Type the name of the label that you want to move
3. Press Enter

The existing labels shift down, and the moved label takes its new position. For example, type "West" in cell A4, over the existing District name, "Central"

Then, press Enter, to complete the change. West moves to cell A4, and Central moves down to A5.

WARNING: Be careful when using this method. If you type a name that is not an existing label, you will rename the label that you typed over, instead of moving it.

For example, in the screen shot below, I typed "Est" instead of "East" in cell A4, when typing over the West label. The East label remains in cell A7, and the West label has been renamed as "Est"

Type Over Another Label to Add Field

If a pivot field is not in the layout on the worksheet, you can type its name over an existing label, to add it to the layout. This video shows the steps, and written instructions are below the video.

Here are the steps for moving or adding a field:

NOTE: Be sure type the field name correctly! If you make a typo, you'll change the label for the existing pivot field, instead of adding the new pivot field

1. If the pivot table is in Compact layout, change to Outline or Tabular layout
2. Click on the cell where you want a different field to appear
3. Type the name of the field that you want to add
4. Press Enter

The existing fields shift down, and the added field takes its new position.

In the screen shot below, I'm typing "Techs" where the District field label is.

When I press Enter, the Techs field is added to the Row area, and District moves to the right.

Get the Sample File

To follow along with this tutorial, download the Move Pivot Table Labels sample file. The zipped file is in xlsx format, and does not contain macros.

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