Use a Prefix for Table Names – Excel Best Practice

A great time-saving trick is to use a prefix when naming your tables.

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Name your tables using a prefix

I use “tbl”, but some people use “t_” as the prefix. You can use whatever you want, but the key is to be consistent.

Why is this a good habit to get into?

Because it makes writing formulas easier.

You can see that all of the tables in my workbook are listed when I type “tbl” as I'm writing a formula. Instead of navigating to various sheets in the workbook and selecting the table I want, I can just choose from the list that appears when I type my prefix.

List of table names using same prefix

As long as I've used descriptive names when labelling my tables, this is a great timesaver for me.

I hope it proves helpful for you as well. Do you have a favorite tip or shortcut when it comes to using tables in Excel? I'd love to hear it. Leave a comment and let me know.

2 comments

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  • What about using the same Table name but for different sheets in the same Workbook?
    Sometimes known as ‘scope’?

  • That is like getting your tax information together in January, and filing your tax returns in February, instead of making a desperate scramble on April 15th.

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