---
url: https://flip-chart.ru/knowledge-base/en/tables.md
description: >-
  Create tables on a flip: pick a size and a style template, add rows and
  columns, format cells, continue series with autofill, import data from Excel
  and CSV and save a table to a file
---

# How to work with tables

A table on a flip is an editable element with rows and columns. You can type text and numbers into cells, drag other elements into them, calculate with formulas and build charts from the data. A table can be created from scratch, from a style template or imported from a file

## How to create a table

1. On the toolbar, select “Grid” or press the G key. If the tool is not on the toolbar, open “All tools”

2. Pick the table size — up to 10 × 10 cells. The “Table templates” panel opens at the same time with ten styles: with a colored header, a highlighted first column, banded rows or banded columns. Pick a template if you need one

   ![Picking the table size and template](/images/kb/tables/1.png)

3. Click the flip — the table appears in the selected place

   If no size is selected, a 3 × 3 table is created, and with a template — a 4 × 4 table

The template style is kept when you change the table: in new rows and columns the banding, the header and the first column continue by the template rule

To name a table, click its name, type the text and press Enter

## How to change rows and columns

One click selects the whole table, the next click selects a single cell. To select a range, drag the cursor across cells. Clicking a cell while holding Shift adds it to the selection

* Add a row or a column — hover over the edge of the table or over the border between rows or columns and click “+”. Or click “Add cells” in the panel above the table and select “Row bottom”, “Row top”, “Column right” or “Column left”
* Delete — select a whole row or column and click “Delete” in the panel. The same actions are in the context menu of a cell: “Delete row” and “Delete column”. The last row and the last column can't be deleted
* Move — drag a row or a column by its handle to the place you need
* Resize — drag the border between rows or columns. The “Cell resize” button switches the modes: “Auto” — cells adjust to their content, “Manual” — the size changes only when you change it
* Merge — select several adjacent cells and click “Merge cells”. To get the original cells back, click “Unmerge cells”

![The cell panel with the “Add cells” menu](/images/kb/tables/2.png)

## How to enter and format data

* Double-click a cell and type the text. Enter saves the input, Shift + Enter adds a line break inside the cell
* The arrow keys move the selection to an adjacent cell, Tab — to the next cell, Shift + Tab — to the previous one
* Delete or Backspace clears the selected cells; the rows and columns themselves stay
* The panel above the selection lets you set the font and its size, text style, alignment, lists, text color and highlight, cell fill and a link. If the whole table is selected, the formatting applies to all cells
* The text direction button rotates the text in the selected cells vertically; clicking it again brings back the horizontal direction. The button tooltip shows the current state: “Horizontal text direction” or “Vertical text direction”
* You can drag another element of the flip into a cell — a sticker, a shape or an image. It is attached to the cell and moves together with the table
* If you select several cells with numbers, a hint with their sum and average appears above the selection: “Sum: … · Average: …”

To sort or filter rows, select the table and click “Create filter” — a filter button appears in the first row of each column. Its menu offers “Sort A-Z”, “Sort Z-A”, “Sort by color”, “Filter by value” and “Filter by color”. The “Remove filter” button clears all filters and sorting

You can calculate in cells with formulas — they are described in the article [How to use formulas in tables](/en/table-formulas). Charts are built from table data: [How to build a chart from table data](/en/charts)

## How to use autofill

1. Select a cell or a range with the source values
2. Drag the handle in the bottom right corner of the selection right, left, up or down

   ![Autofill of a number series](/images/kb/tables/3.png)

The result depends on what is selected:

* One cell — its value and formatting are copied to the adjacent cells
* Several numbers with a constant step, for example 1 and 2 or 5, 10, 15 — the series continues with the same step, including descending and fractional ones
* Cells with formulas — the formulas are copied and their references shift

Autofill works only within the table: it doesn't create new rows or columns

## How to hide cell content

1. Select a cell or a range

2. Click “Hide” in the panel above the selection or press Ctrl + H (⌘ + H on macOS)

   The text and the elements inside the cells are hidden for all participants; the cells themselves stay in the table

3. To bring the content back, select the cells and click “Show” or press Ctrl + Shift + H (⌘ + Shift + H on macOS)

The hidden state is kept when cells are copied. Autofill doesn't write into a hidden cell: the message “Cannot write data into a hidden cell” appears

::: warning Plan limits
Hiding cells is included in paid plans
:::

## How to import a table from a file

1. Drag an XLS, XLSX or CSV file onto the flip, or click “Upload” on the toolbar and select the file. You can also copy data from Excel or another spreadsheet editor and paste it into an empty area of the flip — Ctrl + V (⌘ + V on macOS)

2. In the window that opens, select how to add the data:

   * “Create as table” — an editable object on the flip
   * “Create as file” — a view-only document. This option is not available for CSV
   * “Create as sticker set” — stickers with cell data

   ![The import method window](/images/kb/tables/4.png)

3. Click “Select”

If the file has several sheets, a separate table named after the sheet is created for each of them. Supported formatting, row and column sizes, merged cells and charts are carried over together with the data

If you paste copied data into a selected cell of an existing table, it is pasted starting from that cell without the import window. Missing rows and columns are added automatically

## How to export a table

Right-click the table, select “Save as...” and a format — XLS or CSV. The file gets the results of formulas instead of the formulas themselves

You can also copy cells: select a range, press Ctrl + C (⌘ + C on macOS) and paste the data into another app

## Limitations

* A file of up to 150 rows and 30 columns can be imported as a table or a sticker set. A larger XLS or XLSX file can only be added as a file
* The size of an imported file is up to 35 MB
* The flip owner, the team owner and space administrators can hide cell content
* While a filter or sorting is on in a table, you can't move rows, merge cells or use autofill
* A row or a column with merged cells can't be moved or deleted — unmerge the cells first
* Only logged-in users can save a table to a file