How to Choose Columns with CHOOSECOLS in Excel

Pick and reorder columns from a wide table, or choose one by its header name, with CHOOSECOLS.

You will learn to

• Return selected columns in a new order
• Build a call list from three columns
• Choose a column by its header name

How it works

CHOOSECOLS(array, col_num1, [col_num2], …) returns only the columns you list, in that order. =CHOOSECOLS(A2:G9,5,2) returns column 5 then column 2 of a seven-column table, so you can trim a wide CRM export or put the most useful field first. Negative numbers count from the right, so -1 is the last column.

The column numbers can be formulas. =CHOOSECOLS(A2:G9,XMATCH("Plan",A1:G1)) finds the Plan header and returns that column, so the formula keeps working if the export’s column order changes.

=CHOOSECOLS(A2:G9,5,2)