Excel: 3 Steps to Effortless Custom Views

Learn the simple steps to set up and use Excel’s Custom Views feature. Instantly switch between report layouts, filters, and print settings to save hours on recurring reporting tasks and streamline your spreadsheet workflow.

What Are Excel Custom Views?

Custom Views are a powerful, often overlooked, feature that allows you to store different display settings, applied filters, and defined print areas for the same worksheet. This feature is essential for analysts and finance professionals who need to switch quickly between “Detailed” and “Summary” versions of their data.

Step-by-Step Guide to Implementing Custom Views

Follow these three simple steps to set up and start using Custom Views to manage and toggle your Excel report layouts efficiently.

Step 1: Define and Create Your First Custom View

The process begins by configuring your worksheet exactly how you want one of the views to look (e.g., hiding columns, applying a specific filter, setting the print area), and then capturing that state:

• Go to the View tab in the Excel ribbon.
• Click Custom Views > Add.
• In the dialog box, enter a descriptive, keyword-rich name for your view (e.g., “Monthly Summary View” or “Detailed Filtered Data”).
• The view will save your current display settings, any applied filters, and the defined print areas.

Step 2: Instantly Toggle Between Saved Report Layouts

Once you have two or more views saved, switching between them is incredibly fast, allowing you to instantly change your Excel sheet’s appearance with a single click:

• Go back to View > Custom Views.
• Select the desired view name from the list (e.g., “Summary Report” or “Detailed Report”).
• Click Show.
• Excel instantly applies all the saved settings, allowing you to switch report layouts while maintaining all specific formatting, filtering, and print setups.

Step 3: Use Custom Views for Standardized Reporting

Excel Custom Views can be an excellent tool for streamlining team processes and standardizing recurring reports:

• Store multiple pre-configured views within a master template workbook.
• When a new monthly or quarterly report is created from the template, the Custom Views are carried over.
• This helps ensure consistent report layouts, display settings, and print setups across your entire team.

Best Practices

To get the most from the Custom Views tool:

• Keep View Names Concise: Use short, descriptive names that make the purpose of the view clear (e.g., “Print Ready” vs. “Working Data”).
• The Table Limitation: A crucial best practice is to avoid using Custom Views in workbooks that contain data formatted as Excel Tables (created via Insert > Table), as this feature is not supported and may lead to unexpected results.
• Targeted Savings: Focus on implementing Custom Views for sheets where you frequently adjust visibility (hide/unhide rows/columns) or change print areas, as this is where the biggest time savings occur.

For more Excel tutorials, quick-tip videos and articles, check out LearnExcelNow.

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• Finance Technology