Pivot Tables in Microsoft Excel: Links

This introduction has been contributed by Debra Dalgleish, Excel MVP. 
Contextures, Copyright © 2014. All rights reserved.
Debra Dalgleish, Excel MVP since 2001, is the author of three books on pivot tables, published by Apress. She shares Excel tips, tutorials, and videos on her websites, www.contextures.com and www.pivot-table.com.

Web Sites

Peltier Tech Blog – Pivot Table Resources – a listing of posts on this blog, covering many aspects of pivot tables in Microsoft Excel, including:

• Preliminary Data Exploration with Excel Pivot Tables
• Making Regular Charts from Pivot Tables
• Create and Update a Chart Using Only Part of a Pivot Table’s Data
• Update Regular Chart when Pivot Table Updates
• Using Pivot Table Data for a Chart with a Dual Category Axis
• Grouping by Date in a Pivot Table
• Referencing Pivot Table Ranges in VBA
• … and more

Debra Dalgleish’s Excel Tutorials and Videos – which includes these pages of Pivot Table-related topics:

• Pivot Table and Pivot Chart FAQs
• Pivot Table Article Index
• Pivot Table Video Index

• Pivot Table Introduction
• Grouping Data
• Pivot Table from Multiple Sheets
• Running Totals
• Summary Functions
• Clear Old Items in Pivot Table Drop Downs

Microsoft – Overview of PivotTable and PivotChart reports
Good introduction to Pivot Tables.

Microsoft – 25 Easy PivotTable Reports
Sample file to download, and on-line instructions

Microsoft – Create a Pivot Table to Analyze Worksheet Data
Basic steps, and links to other articles

Chandoo – Excel Pivot Table Tutorial
Chandoo gives a good overview of pivot tables, with helpful tips and links.

Microsoft Support Articles

Calculated field returns incorrect grand total in Excel (211470)
In a PivotTable, Microsoft Excel may calculate an incorrect grand total for a calculated field.

Pivot Table Uses COUNT Instead of SUM with Blank Cells (110599)
Microsoft Excel automatically uses the SUM function for numeric data and the COUNT function for non-numeric data

How to create a dynamic defined range in an Excel worksheet (830287)
Create a named range that extends to include new information

GETPIVOTDATA formula is automatically created (287736)
When you try to create a simple cell link formula that refers to a cell in the data area of a PivotTable in Microsoft Excel, a GETPIVOTDATA formula is automatically created instead.

You cannot create a PivotTable in Excel 2013 when field names in a source range contain similar characters (2756731)
The data model cannot differentiate between the similar characters.

Pivot Table Books

Here are a few books about pivot tables, available from Amazon and elsewhere. I’ve selected these books because I know the authors and I’ve used the books, so I can vouch for their quality. Disclosure: if you purchase one of these books using my link, I’ll get a teeny commission.

Beginning PivotTables in Excel 2007: From Novice to Professional

Microsoft Excel Most Valuable Professional Debra Dalgleish explains what PivotTables are, how you can benefit from using them, how to create them and modify them, and how to use their enhanced features. Using a Pivot Table in Microsoft Excel 2007 is a quick and exciting way to slice and dice a large amount of data. Debra carefully explains the benefits of using Pivot Tables for fast data analysis, provides a step-by-step approach to those new to Pivot Tables, and offers tips and tricks that cannot be found elsewhere.

Excel Pivot Tables Recipe Book: A Problem-Solution Approach

Debra Dalgleish, Microsoft Excel Most Valuable Professional since 2001, and an expert and trainer in Microsoft Excel, brings together a one-stop resource for anyone curious about representing, analyzing, and using their data with PivotTables and PivotCharts. Debra presents tips and techniques in this collection of recipes that can’t be found in Excel’s Help section, while carefully explaining the most confusing features of PivotTables to help you realize their powerful potential.

Excel 2013 Pivot Table Data Crunching (MrExcel Library)

This book will help you leverage all the amazing flexibility and analytical power of Pivot Tables. You will learn how to generate complex pivot reports complete with drill-down capabilities and accompanying charts. Then you’ll discover how to build a comprehensive, dynamic pivot table reporting system for any business task or function. Microsoft Excel Most Valuable Professionals Bill Jelen and Mike Alexander include step-by-step instructions, real-world case studies, plus complete and easy recipes for solving your most common business analysis problems.