To apply filtering based on dates in Microsoft Excel using the advanced filter, the user must complete the following actions.
Put Your Information into a Table: The data in the worksheet should be arranged in tabular form with appropriate titles for each column. In this case, as the user will be using a date filter, there should be a column titled “Date,” and all entries in that column should have the ‘date’ format.
Instructor’s Table: On the same worksheet, insert a small table for filtering purposes. It has to have the same header (for example, “Date”) and the appropriate filtering condition. If you want to filter out dates that are older than January 1, 2024, you will place >01/01/2024 in the criteria range directly under the ‘Date’ field. For a date range filter, first, in one row, write >=01/01/2024, and then in the next row, write <=12/31/2024.
Make Use of the Advanced Filter:
- Choose the data table to be filtered.
- Click on the “Data” tab and on “Advanced” from the Sort & Filter” section in the ribbon.
- In the pop-up “Advanced Filter” window, make sure to tick the ‘Filter the list, in place’ option or ‘Copy to another location’ option, determined by whether you want to perform the filtering on that sheet or move that data somewhere else.
- In the provided ‘List range,’ fill in the range of your data table.
- In the ‘Criteria range,’ fill in the range of your criteria table.
Press “OK.” Excel will filter the data in the specified range according to the imposed date-specific condition.
This approach permits date-specific filtering of data not only for certain dates or date ranges but also for conditions such as dates earlier or later than a particular date.