How to Delete a Pivot Table in Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel‘s Pivot Table feature is a powerful tool for summarizing and analyzing data, but there may come a time when you need to remove this table from your spreadsheet. Whether it’s to clean up your workbook or because the Pivot Table is no longer necessary in a sheet, knowing how to properly delete it is essential.
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How to Delete a Pivot Table in Microsoft Excel
Removing a Pivot Table from your Microsoft Excel workbook is a straightforward process that helps maintain the cleanliness and organization of your data analysis projects. Follow these steps to safely remove a Pivot Table from your Excel workbook.
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Step 1. Select the Pivot Table
Click anywhere inside the Pivot Table you wish to delete. This action will make the Pivot Table Tools tabs visible in the Excel ribbon, indicating that the Pivot Table is currently selected.
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Step 2. Clear the Pivot Table
Once the Pivot Table is selected, you have two main options to remove it.
(1) To clear all the data but keep the Pivot Table shell, go to the ‘Analyze’ tab under Pivot Table Tools in the ribbon, then click ‘Clear’ > ‘Clear All.’ This will remove the data and formatting, leaving a blank Pivot Table. (2) If you prefer deleting the Pivot Table, including its shell, press Delete on your keyboard while the Pivot Table is selected. Alternatively, right-click within the Pivot Table, choose ‘Delete,’ and then ‘Entire PivotTable’ to remove it entirely from your worksheet.
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Step 3. Verify and Save
After deleting the Pivot Table, verify that it has been removed as intended and that no other parts of your worksheet have been affected. Once you’re satisfied, save your workbook to preserve the changes.
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FAQs
Will deleting a Pivot Table also delete the source data?
No, deleting a Pivot Table does not delete the source data; it only removes the Pivot Table structure and its summary.
Can I undo the deletion of a Pivot Table in Excel?
Yes, you can immediately press Ctrl + Z to undo the deletion of a Pivot Table.
Is it possible to delete multiple Pivot Tables at once?
To delete multiple Pivot Tables at once, you must select each Pivot Table individually and delete them; Excel does not offer a feature to delete multiple Pivot Tables in a single action.
What happens if I only delete the cells of a Pivot Table and not the entire table?
If you only delete the cells of a Pivot Table, you might end up with a partially deleted Pivot Table that could cause errors or unexpected behavior; it’s best to delete the entire Pivot Table.
How can I remove a Pivot Table but keep the data displayed by it?
To keep the displayed data, copy the Pivot Table data and paste it as values in a new location before deleting the original Pivot Table.