The database capabilities of Excel are very powerful. In fact, not only can Excel be used to create a simple searchable database, it also can be used to create a proper relational database.

Tips This article applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, and Office 365. View the videos listed in the Resources section for more ideas on using Excel's database functions.

Here's how to create a pivot table in Excel to slice and dice your data, letting you perform in-depth analyses and spot important trends.

To create data bars in Excel, select your cells and then choose data bars from Conditional Formatting.

How to use Microsoft 365 Lists to organize Excel data you must track or share Your email has been sent If you work in Teams or SharePoint, you’re probably familiar with the concept of lists ...

In other words, these references will never change—I will always use the ID to create the lookup, and the database will always be in these cells.

Learn how to create a drop-down list using Data Validation in Excel. Data Validation limits the type of data that can be entered into a cell.

Drop-down lists in Excel let you create a list of valid choices that you can select for a given field. We'll show you how to use tables, named ranges, formulas, data validation, and table styles.