Excel Drop Down Lists
Generally speaking there are 3 types of drop down lists in Excel:
- Form Control
- ActiveX
- Data Validation.
In this article I will brieftly explain each one and provide links to more detailed explanation of each.
Contents
Form Control (Combo Box):
These drop down lists which are actually called ComboBoxes are used in userforms. Although they can also be used on worksheeta, I don’t recommend it. In the figure below you can see a combobox on a userform. It was created using the toolbox:
This drop down list (combo box) is covered in detail in the article below:
Activex (Combo box)
Again this drop down list is called a combo box. You can insert one of these onto a worksheet similar to the figure below:
Again I do not recommend this. The main reason I say this is due to a aesthetics concerns. Its really difficult making an ActiveX drop down list look good on a sheet. You would have to match the dimension with that of a cell and every time your cell size changes or moves around you would have to readjust the control. Therefor I’m not going to explain this drop down list.
Data Validation:
The method I use for making drop down lists in excel sheets, is data validation. Below you can see a drop down list created using data validation:
I have covered this topic in detail in the article below:
See Also:
If you need assistance with your code, or you are looking for a VBA programmer to hire feel free to contact me. Also please visit my website www.software-solutions-online.com