Google Sheets Sort Sheet By Column

Sort Sheet By Column

Sorting a sheet by column preserves the relation between multiple data columns.

The sort commands can be found in the Data menu.

Example

Sort the Pokemon by their names in ascending order (from A to Z).

Copy the values to follow along.

Bulbasaur 318 Ivysaur 405 Venusaur 525 Charmander 309 Charmeleon 405 Charizard 534 Squirtle 314 Wartortle 405 Blastoise 530 Caterpie 195 Metapod 205 Butterfree 395 Weedle 195 Kakuna 205 Beedrill 395 Pidgey 251 Pidgeotto 349 Pidgeotto 479 Rattata 253 Raticate 413

Copy Values

1. Select column A by clicking on the letter A in the column bar

2. Click on the Data menu and select Sort sheet by column A, A → Z

This is the result:

Now all the Pokemon are sorted by their names.

Example (Sort Sheet By Column, Another Way)

This example shows another way to sort Pokemon names in ascending order (from A to Z).

1. Select column A by clicking on the letter A in the column bar

2. Click on the drop-down menu next to letter B in the column bar ()

3. Click on Sort sheet A → Z

This is the result:

Non-Working Example (Sort Sheet By Column with Headers)

Sort the Pokemon by their names in ascending order (from A to Z).

Copy the values to follow along.

Name Total stats Bulbasaur 318 Ivysaur 405 Venusaur 525 Charmander 309 Charmeleon 405 Charizard 534 Squirtle 314 Wartortle 405 Blastoise 530 Caterpie 195 Metapod 205 Butterfree 395 Weedle 195 Kakuna 205 Beedrill 395 Pidgey 251 Pidgeotto 349 Pidgeotto 479 Rattata 253 Raticate 413

Copy Values

Unlike the first example, the data for this example has headers.

Let's see what happens if we sort this data.

1. Select column A by clicking on the letter A in the column bar

2. Click on the Data menu and select Sort sheet by column A, A → Z

This is the result:

Notice anything wrong?

The headers are also sorted

This is why sort sheet by colum is not suitable for data with headers.