What is Data Validation in Google Sheets?

What is data validation in Google Sheets?

Imagine you’re managing a sales report. Suddenly, you realize your team keeps entering the wrong dates or inconsistent product codes.

Frustrating, right? Data errors can lead to bigger mistakes, costing time and money. That’s where data validation in Google Sheets becomes a lifesaver. It ensures the information entered follows specific rules, reducing errors before they even happen.

According to IBM, poor data quality costs the U.S. economy around $3.1 trillion annually. Small mistakes add up, and businesses are feeling the impact. With data validation in Google Sheets, you create rules for your cells. This can be a list of options, a range of numbers, or a specific format.

This simple yet powerful tool helps teams stay organized and accurate. Businesses worldwide use it to streamline data entry, boost accuracy, and maintain consistency.

Imagine your team no longer wasting time double-checking entries or fixing mistakes. Instead, they can focus on the tasks that matter most. Data validation in Google Sheets goes beyond simply ensuring the cleanliness of your spreadsheet. It’s all about making sure your data can be relied upon.

In the current data-focused world, precision is crucial for a project’s success. So, let’s explore data validation in Google Sheets in detail.

Table of Contents:

1. What is Data Validation in Google Sheets?
2. Why is Data Validation Important?
3. What are the Fundamentals of Data Validation?
4. How Many Types of Data Validation?
5. What are the Steps to Add Data Validation in Google Sheets?
6. How to Copy Data Validation in Google Sheets?
7. How to Edit Data Validation in Google Sheets?
8. How to Remove Google Sheets Data Validation?
9. What are the Advanced Data Validation Techniques?
10. How to Visualize Validated Data in Google Sheets?
11. Wrap Up

First…

What is Data Validation in Google Sheets?

Definition: Data validation in Google Sheets is a feature that controls what can be entered into a cell. It ensures that data meets specific criteria, like a number range, a list of options, or a particular format. This reduces errors and keeps your spreadsheet accurate.

By setting rules, you can limit the type of data input, ensuring consistency. It’s a simple way to improve data quality and make spreadsheets easier for teams or individuals to manage.

Why is Data Validation Important?

Data validation might seem like a small feature in Google Sheets, but its impact is enormous. Think about the time you’ve spent correcting spreadsheet errors—missing numbers, wrong formats, or typos. It’s frustrating. Data validation helps avoid that by keeping everything in check from the start.

• Prevents errors: Data validation prevents common mistakes, like entering text where a number is needed. It forces the right input, saving you from time-consuming corrections.
• Enhances data consistency: With data validation, every entry follows the same format or criteria, keeping your information consistent. This is especially helpful when multiple people are working on the same sheet.
• Streamlines workflow: No more back-and-forths asking for corrections. Data validation keeps the workflow smooth by ensuring entries are correct the first time.
• Improves decision-making: Accurate data leads to data-driven decisions. When your data is error-free, your data analysis is more reliable, helping you make informed choices.
• Customizes data input: You can customize data input rules, like creating a drop-down list of options. This saves time and ensures users can only select valid entries, minimizing confusion.

What are the Fundamentals of Data Validation?

Data validation is one of those features in Google Sheets that make life easier without you even noticing. These are the fundamentals of data validation.

• Criteria or rules: Data validation relies on setting criteria or rules defining what type of data can be entered into a cell.
• Data input restriction: You can limit what goes into each cell, ensuring only valid data is entered. This prevents unwanted entries and keeps your spreadsheet clean.
• Error alerts: An alert can pop up when someone tries to enter invalid data. This lets users know their entry doesn’t meet the rules, giving them a chance to correct it immediately.
• Data integrity: With proper data validation, you maintain the data integrity of your data, ensuring everything entered is accurate and consistent.
• Range and scope: You can apply validation rules to a single cell or an entire range. You have the flexibility to manage your data input across different sections of your sheet.
• Custom validation formulas: For more advanced control, custom formulas allow you to create specific rules, ensuring your data meets your needs.
• Feedback and correction: When errors occur, data validation provides immediate feedback, guiding you to fix issues right away. This saves time and reduces the risk of costly mistakes.

How Many Types of Data Validation?

When you think of data validation, you might imagine a simple rule that keeps things in order. But did you know there are many types of data validation? Each one plays a unique role in making sure your data stays accurate and useful:

1. Data type validation: Ensures the correct data type is entered, such as restricting a cell to only accept numbers or dates.
2. Range validation: You can set a range of acceptable values, like ensuring a number falls between 1 and 100.
3. Format validation: This checks that the data follows a specific format, such as requiring phone numbers to follow a standard pattern.
4. Length validation: You can control the number of characters entered, like limiting text entries to 50 characters or less.
5. Uniqueness validation: This Google Sheets data validation ensures the value entered is unique, avoiding duplicate entries in a dataset.
6. Consistency validation: Ensures data is consistent across multiple entries, preventing conflicting information.
7. Presence validation (required fields): This type ensures that certain fields are not left blank, requiring input before moving on.
8. Custom validation (logical rules): You can create custom rules using logical formulas, allowing for highly specific data requirements.
9. Cross-field validation: Validates data by comparing it with other fields, ensuring the correct relationships between data.
10. Lookup validation: It checks that an entry matches a value from a predefined list or another field.
11. Dependent field validation: This ensures the input in one field affects or restricts the data allowed in another, such as linking product categories and subcategories.

What are the Steps to Add Data Validation in Google Sheets?

1. Open your sheet: Go to the cell or column where you want to set rules. Right-click the column header and choose “Data validation”.

2. Add a rule: In the sidebar, click “+ Add rule”.

3. Select Range: Choose the range of cells for the rule. Selecting a column header usually covers the whole column.

4. Set criteria: Under “Criteria,” pick your rule. For example, if you want numbers between 1 and 10, choose “Is between” and enter those values.

5. Choose an alert: Decide if invalid entries should show a warning or reject the input.

Choosing “Show a warning” will display an alert message (like the one seen below) explaining the issue.

How to Copy Data Validation in Google Sheets?

Copying data validation in Google Sheets is easy:

1. Select the cell(s) with the data validation.
2. Right-click and choose “Copy” or use Ctrl/Cmd + C.
3. Right-click the target cell and select “Paste Special” if you only want to paste the data validation.

How to Use Data Validation in Google Sheets – Select & Copy Cells

Use ‘Paste Special’ to paste only the data validation.

As you can see, the new range has been added to the existing data validation rule.

How to Edit Data Validation in Google Sheets?

To edit your existing rules, go to Data > Data validation. In the side panel, choose the rule you want to modify.

How to Use Data Validation in Google Sheets – Select Rule

You will see the same options as when you created the rule.

How to Remove Google Sheets Data Validation?

To remove data validation, go to Data > Data validation. Hover over the rule in the side panel, and click the trash can icon to delete it.

How to Use Data Validation in Google Sheets – Delete Rule

Alternatively, you can select the rule and click “Remove validation” to delete it.

What are the Advanced Data Validation Techniques?

Basic data validation is great for keeping things in check, but what if you need more control? Advanced data validation techniques step in when standard rules aren’t enough. These techniques offer smarter ways to handle data, especially when dealing with complex or dynamic datasets.

• Regular expressions: Regular expressions allow for precise pattern matching, ensuring data follows specific formats, like phone numbers or email addresses.
• Cross-database validation: You can validate data by comparing it with information stored in other databases. This ensures consistency across different systems.
• Dynamic validation: This technique updates validation rules based on changing data, allowing for flexible and adaptive input restrictions.
• Conditional validation: Set rules that change based on other conditions in the spreadsheet. Such as validating a cell only if another has a specific value.
• Real-time validation: With real-time validation, data is checked as it’s being entered, providing immediate feedback to correct errors instantly.
• Data integrity checks: These checks run through your data to ensure it remains accurate, complete, and consistent. This safeguards the quality of your dataset.
• Automated error detection: Automated tools can scan your entire spreadsheet for invalid entries, identifying and highlighting errors without manual oversight.

How to Visualize Validated Data in Google Sheets?

Data validation keeps your data clean, but how do you make sense of it all? That’s where visualization comes in. Data visualization bridges raw data and insights, giving you a clear picture of trends and patterns.

Google Sheets has its perks, but let’s face it—it often lacks powerful, interactive charts.

Enter ChartExpo. This tool turns validated data in Google Sheets into stunning visuals, making analysis faster and easier.

Say goodbye to Excel’s limitations and hello to smarter insights!

Let’s learn how to install ChartExpo in Google Sheets.

• To start using ChartExpo, download it directly from the Google Sheets program. To do this, select Extensions from the top toolbar.
• A menu will appear. Click the Get add-ons option.
• Search for ChartExpo, and click on Charts, Graphs & Visualizations by ChartExpo when it appears in the results.
• Click the Install button. You will have to confirm your Google account and accept some permissions.

ChartExpo charts are available both in Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel. Please use the following CTAs to install the tool of your choice and create beautiful visualizations in a few clicks in your favorite tool.

Example

Let’s visualize the data validation example data below using ChartExpo.

Channel	Gender	Views	Clicks	Sales
Facebook	Male	15000	1000	55
Facebook	Female	4000	150	10
Google	Male	9000	1200	60
Google	Female	3000	325	15
X (Twitter)	Male	7000	900	33
X (Twitter)	Female	2000	125	20

• To get started with ChartExpo, install ChartExpo in Google Sheets.
• Go to Extensions > Charts, Graphs & Visualizations by ChartExpo > Open.

• To access the charts library, click the Add new chart button.

• Once ChartExpo is loaded. Click on “Clustered Stacked Bar Chart”.

• After selecting the sheet that contains your data, choose the Metrics option. Add the corresponding numbers (in our example, we’ll add the Sales, Profit %, and Number of orders).
• To add dimensional data, click the Dimensions button and enter the desired values:

• Click the Create chart button to complete the process.

• Click the Edit chart button to make custom changes.
• To change the title of the chart, click the pencil icon next to the Chart Header.
• It will open the properties dialog. Under the Text section, you can add a heading in Line 1 and enable the Show option. Give the appropriate title of your chart and click the Apply button.

• You can change the Legend color of Male by clicking on the Small pencil icon as follows:

• You can change the Legend color of Female by clicking on the Small pencil icon as follows:

• Change all the legend shapes into circles and click the “Save” button:

• Your final chart will appear as shown below.

Insights

From the data

• Male engagement is higher across all channels.
• Facebook generates the most views from male users.
• Google delivers the highest conversion rate for males.
• Female users have fewer views but higher conversion efficiency.

FAQs

How do I add up data validation in Google Sheets?

To add data validation in Google Sheets:

1. Select the desired cell or range.
2. Go to Data > Data validation.
3. Choose your criteria, like number or text.
4. Set rules and select how to handle invalid entries.
5. Click “Save”.

How do I edit a data validation list in Google Sheets?

To edit a data validation list in Google Sheets:

1. Select the cell with the rule.
2. Go to Data > Data validation.
3. In the side panel, adjust the criteria or list.
4. Update the options as needed.
5. Click “Save” to apply changes.

How do I add a drop-down list in Google Sheets?

To add a drop-down list in Google Sheets:

1. Select the cell or range.
2. Go to Data > Data validation.
3. Choose “List of items” under Criteria.
4. Enter your list options separated by commas.
5. Click “Save” to create the drop-down list.

Wrap Up

Data validation in Google Sheets is essential for maintaining clean and accurate data. It helps control what can be entered into a cell by setting specific criteria. This prevents mistakes before they happen, which is key when working with large or collaborative datasets.

With data validation, you can establish rules for various types of input. This reduces errors and ensures consistency, making your data easier to analyze and work with.

The feature also includes error alerts, which notify users when they try to enter invalid data. This immediate feedback prevents incorrect entries from slipping through unnoticed, saving time and avoiding the need for later corrections.

Additionally, data validation makes teamwork more efficient. When multiple people are working on the same sheet, it ensures everyone follows the same data entry rules. This minimizes the risk of inconsistencies and keeps the workflow running smoothly.

For more complex data needs, custom validation formulas offer advanced control. You can create specific rules tailored to your data, adding flexibility and precision.

In summary, data validation in Google Sheets is a powerful tool that enhances accuracy, improves collaboration, and simplifies data management. It’s an invaluable feature for anyone serious about maintaining the integrity of their data.

Do not hesitate.

Get started with data validation in Google Sheets today to experience the benefits first-hand.