How to Use a Slicer in Google Sheets

With millions of active users, Google Sheets is a popular choice for data analysis. Features like slicers elevate this utility by letting you filter pivot tables and charts, allowing you to manipulate data quickly. 

Serving as visual filters, slicers offer a simple way to filter by value or condition, helping you focus on specific parts of the data set without navigating complex menus. Whether you are managing pivot tables or charts, slicers can help you increase your Google Sheets mastery through quicker data manipulation and filtering.

What is a slicer in Google Sheets?

Slicers are interactive and accessible tools that let you filter data in charts, tables, and pivot tables. You can think of slicers as remote controls that operate on top of your existing spreadsheet. Slicers can significantly improve data analysis and presentation by providing interactive filtering features and the capability to link with multiple data sets.

Key features

Key features of slicers include visual, one-click filtering, native pivot table and chart integration, and customizable design. You can also utilize the following slicer features:

• Multi-slicer functionality: You can use multiple slicers in the same spreadsheet by applying them to separate pivot tables or charts. 

• Appearance customization: You can customize your slicer’s appearance by clicking the three little dots next to your slicer and clicking “Edit”. Here you can alter the font style, size, format, title, color, and background.

• Real-time collaboration: Anyone with access to your sheet can see the current slicer filter in use. New slicer filters are visible to everyone as soon as you apply your changes. 

When should you use a slicer?

Slicers are ideal for scenarios requiring interactive, visual data exploration without altering raw data sets. You can use slicers for a variety of data applications, including the following:

• Quickly filter data sets: You can place a slicer beside a chart or table to allow users of your spreadsheet to quickly exclude certain values and view the updated, filtered results directly in the chart or table.

• Pivot tables or dashboards: Slicers work with pivot tables and can be very helpful for constructing dashboards in Google Sheets.

• Interactive reports: Slicers provide high-quality insights into data sets and their presentation through their interactive filtering options and compatibility with multiple data sets.

What is the difference between a slicer and a filter pane?

A slicer works much like a standard filter, but it's a built-in toolbar within your spreadsheet. Slicers add interactivity by providing a user-friendly interface that you or others can use to filter data in charts, tables, and pivot tables. Meanwhile, filters and filter views let you sort, display, and save customized views of spreadsheet data, even for multiple users or without edit access. Google Sheets allows you to utilize both slicers and filters to fine-tune your spreadsheet’s data. 

Add and use a slicer in Google Sheets

To add a slicer to your data set in Google Sheets, open Google Sheets and select a data set, click “Data” → “Add a slicer”, select the column you want to filter by, and select your filter rules. You can read more about the process of creating slicers below.

1. Open Google Sheets and select the data set

Create (or open an existing) spreadsheet at sheets.google.com, then choose the chart or Pivot Table you wish to apply the filter.

2. Click Data → Add a slicer

A "Select a data range" panel will appear above your spreadsheet. If it doesn't show up, click the grid-shaped "Select data range" icon in the Data tab of the Slicer sidebar to open it.

3. Select the column you want to filter by

The “Select data range” panel automatically suggests data ranges to choose from, but you can also manually select a cell range in the spreadsheet or click a column header to select the whole column.

4. Click the slicer and select your filter rules

You can filter by condition (select a preset condition or create a custom one) or values (remove selection of the data entries you wish to hide). After making your selection, click “Ok”, and the slicer toolbar will show up on the spreadsheet.

How to customize your slicer settings

Google Sheets allows you to customize and edit your slicer’s data set, appearance, or filter column. You can use the following steps to further customize your slicers:

• Select the slicer you want to customize.

• Click the three-dot menu on the slicer and choose “Edit slicer.”

• Here, you can adjust the slicer’s title, position, colors, and font to improve its function and match your spreadsheet’s design.

• Click the striped triangle icon to access the slicer filtering menu.

• Here you can set a condition for the first cell, and the same rule is automatically applied to every cell in the range.

Advanced slicer features

Did you know you can use multiple slicers on a single sheet? You can also apply slicers to pivot tables and charts. You can explore these features in more depth and learn how to use them below.

Apply slicers to pivot tables and charts

To add a slicer to a pivot table or chart, click on the pivot table or chart you want to filter, then follow the aforementioned steps (Click ”Data” → “Add a slicer”). Keep in mind that slicers affect all charts and pivot tables on a sheet that share the same data set. Slicers work with pivot tables and charts by design. 

Use multiple slicers

To add multiple slicers to a single sheet to filter different columns, create two different pivot tables and add slicers to each one separately. By default, slicers work independently unless linked to the same pivot table. You can also copy slicers by accessing the three-dot menu on them and clicking Copy slicer, allowing you to keep formatting consistent.

Related tasks

Google Sheets offers alternative measures to filter and present your data without using slicers, including filters and in-cell dropdowns. Understanding these options ensures you choose the right tool for your workflow.

Filtering data without a slicer


You can use Google Sheets filters to filter data without using a slicer. Below is a brief guide to creating filters:

• Highlight the set of cells you would like to filter.

• Click “Data” → “Sort range” → “Advanced range sorting options.”

• If your columns include titles, select "Data has header row."

• Choose the first column to sort and select the order.

• Click “Sort.”

Using in-cell dropdown instead of a slicer

You can also choose to use an in-cell dropdown instead of a slicer. Below is a brief guide to creating an in-cell dropdown list:

• Choose the cell or cells where you want to add a dropdown list.

• Click “Insert” → “Dropdown.”

• Under “Criteria”, select from the available options:

  • “Dropdown from a range”: Select the cells you want to use for the list items.

  • “Dropdown”: Input the value for the dropdown.

• Click “Done.”

Troubleshooting common issues

While Google Sheets slicers help simplify data analysis, you may occasionally encounter technical hiccups. Consider the following resolutions to common problems with slicers:

• Slicer not filtering the data: If your slicer is not filtering data, make sure your slicer is affecting the correct data range and that no errors are present within the data.

• Slicer filters not saving: To maintain the filters you use on your slicer after exiting your spreadsheet, set them as default by selecting the slicer you want to make default, then clicking “More” → “Set current filters as default.”

• Unresponsive slicer: If your slicer is not responding to updates in your data, try refreshing your Google Sheets page. 

Learn more about Google Sheets on Coursera

Google Sheets slicers can be a vital tool for filtering and presenting your data sets. If you want to learn more about organizing and analyzing spreadsheets, how to visualize and present data findings, and other key analytical skills, consider Google’s Data Analytics Professional Certificate on Coursera, which you can use to advance your career in data analytics.

You can also explore the IBM Data Engineering Professional Certificate for the opportunity to create, design, and manage databases, gain expertise in the latest practical skills and knowledge that data engineers apply in their everyday work, and build up a strong foundation in data engineering.