How to Use Excel Shortcut to Sort Data (7 Easy Ways)

Sometimes, we need to sort data for different kinds of analysis. There are easy ways for sorting data in Excel. But it can be time-consuming when we have a large dataset. We can use Excel Sort Shortcut for this purpose. Different keyboard shortcuts are available for sorting. Today, we will use Excel Sort Shortcut. These shortcuts will save a lot of time by performing the operations quickly.

How to Sort Data in Excel Using Shortcut (7 Easy Ways)

1. Excel Shortcut for Single Column Sorting

In this method, we will show how we can sort a single column. Here, we will use a dataset of four columns. These are Employee, Working Hour, Region & Salary Column.

Follow the steps below for this method.

STEPS:

• Firstly, select a cell in the column where you want to sort. We have selected Cell C5.

• Secondly, press Alt + A S D in descending order. The column will be sorted automatically like below.

• Thirdly, press Alt + A S A in ascending order. The final output will look like below.

Read More: How to Sort Data by Value in Excel

2. Sort Multiple Columns Using Excel Shortcut

In this procedure, we will use the previous dataset. Here, we will work with multiple columns. We will try to sort our Working Hour & Region column together. Follow the steps below.

STEPS:

• Firstly, select a cell in your dataset. We have selected Cell C5.

• Secondly, press Alt + ASS. It will open the dialogue box shown below. Make sure ‘My data has headers’ is selected.

• Thirdly, change the Sort by menu to your expected column. We have selected Working Hour.

• Now, select Add Level to insert the second column of your dataset. You can always choose the Sorting criteria and Order from these options.

• Finally, select OK and it will sort data automatically.

You can see the Working Hour column is sorted in ascending order and then the Region column is sorted in A to Z order.

Read More: How to Add Sort Button in Excel

3. Use of Macro to Sort Data in Excel

We can use the VBA feature of Excel to sort our data. After inserting the VBA code, we can use a keyboard shortcut for sorting. We will use the same dataset here.

Follow the below steps:

STEPS:

• Firstly, go to the DEVELOPER tab and select Visual Basic.

• Secondly, go to Insert in Visual Basic Window and then select Module.
• Thirdly, type the code in the Module and save it.

Sub MultiColumn()
  With ActiveSheet.Sort
    .SortFields.Clear
    .SortFields.Add Key:=Range("C4"), Order:=xlAscending
    .SortFields.Add Key:=Range("D4"), Order:=xlAscending
    .SetRange Range("B4:E10")
    .Header = xlYes
    .Apply
  End With
End Sub

• Then, go to the Macros in the DEVELOPER It will open the Macro window.

• Now, go to the Options tab of the Macro.

• Now, we will create the shortcut key for our macro. We have selected the “a” key here. You can select any key you want.

• Finally, press Ctrl + A, and the data will be sorted in ascending order.

Here, our Working Hour column is sorted in ascending order and then the Region column is sorted in A to Z order.

Read More: How to Sort Data in Excel Using Formula

4. Keyboard Accelerators Shortcut for Sorting in Excel

Keyboard Accelerators are also helpful for sorting datasets in Excel. We will again use the same dataset here. In the following steps, we will demonstrate this method.

STEPS:

• Firstly, select a cell in the column where you want to sort data. We have selected Cell C5.

• Secondly, hit the Alt key and some letters will appear on your screen.

• Thirdly, press the SA key and your data will be sorted in ascending order.

• Now, if you press the SD key, the data will be sorted in descending order.

• Next, for custom sort, press the SS. It will open the Sort window.

• Then, add level and select the columns you want to like Method-2 and press OK.

• Finally, it will sort multiple columns together like the picture below.

Read More: How to Sort Data in Alphabetical Order in Excel

5. Sort in Excel Using the Home Tab

We will use the Home Tab as a shortcut to sort data this time. This method has some similarities with the previous methods. So, we will use the same dataset here.

Follow the steps below.

STEPS:

• Firstly, select a cell in the column where you want to go. We have selected Cell C5.

• Secondly, press Alt + H and some letters will pop up on your screen.
• Thirdly, look at the top right corner, you will find some letters like below.

• Now, press the S key on your keyboard. A drop-down menu appears.

• Finally, press ‘S’, and your data will be sorted in ascending order.

You can also sort your data descendingly by pressing ‘O’ and perform custom sort by pressing ‘U’.

Read More: How to Undo Sort in Excel

6. Use of Menu Key Shortcut for Sorting

Using the Menu Key is another way to sort data. We will sort the Working Hour column of our previous dataset. Follow the steps to learn this method.

STEPS:

• Firstly, select Cell C5.

• Now, press ‘Menu key + OS’, and the column will be sorted ascendingly.

• Next, if you press ‘Menu key + OO’, the column will be sorted descendingly.

• Finally, for custom sort, press ‘Menu key + OU’, and a window opens like Method-2. You can select multiple columns here for sorting.

Read More: How to Sort Alphanumeric Data in Excel

7. Use of Filter Drop Down Menu Shortcut for Sorting

We can also use the Filter option for sorting easily. In this method, we need to add a filter to our dataset first. We will apply this method to the same dataset.

STEPS:

• Firstly, select any cell of your dataset. We have selected Cell C5.

• Secondly, press Ctrl + Shift + L. This will apply the filter to our dataset.

• Thirdly, select the header of the column where you want to sort data.

• Now, press Alt + Drop Down arrow + S. This will sort the column ascendingly.

• Now, press Alt + Drop Down arrow + O to sort the column descendingly.

• Finally, press Alt + Drop Down arrow + T to sort the data according to colors.

Read More: How to Sort in Ascending Order in Excel

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Conclusion

Sorting data is necessary for the representation of our dataset. It helps us to get a clear view of our dataset. We have an easy Excel sort shortcut here. Hope these methods will help you to find solutions to your problem. Last of all, if you have any queries or suggestions, feel free to comment below.

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