How to Link Data to Different Worksheets in Microsoft Excel

Microsoft Excel – Linking Data to Different Worksheets

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. 

   In Microsoft Excel, there are times when you may require the same data on multiple sheets. You may also need the data to be updated on both sheets at the same time. Instead of typing everything twice, you can link the data together. Here is how to accomplish this task.
   
   Let's say we have the following data in Sheet 1:

2. 

   Now, on Sheet 2 we want to create a summary page that will show us the totals for each region. We create the worksheet as such:

3. 

   What we will do next is copy our totals from Sheet 1. We will do this for the North region only. Switch back to Sheet 1 and select the cell with the total for the North region and then copy the data using the Copy button on the toolbar or by hitting CTRL-C.

4. 

   Now switch back to Sheet 2 and select the cell where the total for the North region will go.

5. 

   We will now paste the data that we copied in the previous step. Right click in Cell B2 and click on Paste Special in the menu.

6. 

   You will now choose Paste Link

7. 

   Now a link has been created between the cell on Sheet 1 and the cell on Sheet 2. Now if any values on Sheet 1 change, the change should also be represented on Sheet 2. Let`s try it. Switch back to Sheet 1 and change the value in cell B5 to 15 and then hit Enter.

8. 

   You will notice that the total for the North region changes to 110. Now let`s switch to Sheet 2 and see if the change is reflected there.

9. Indeed the total has been changed there as well. Our link has been successfuly created. Follow the same instructions to create the link for the other cells as well. Enjoy.