A Change in Excel not allowing sorting in pivot tables.

In Excel, sorting issues in pivot tables can arise due to various reasons, including the presence of grouping in your data. If you are unable to sort by columns other than the first one, it may be related to how the data is structured or grouped within the pivot table. Unfortunately, without the ability to ungroup the data, your sorting options may be limited.

If you are facing a specific issue after a recent update, it could be beneficial to check for any known issues or changes in the latest version of Excel that might affect sorting functionality. Additionally, ensuring that your pivot table is set up correctly and that there are no conflicting settings can help resolve the issue.

If you are still encountering problems, consider reviewing the Excel documentation or support resources for troubleshooting steps related to pivot tables and sorting.

References:

• The DSUM and DCOUNT functions in Excel do not work with PivotTables

Hi @Kirsten Snater (US),

Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum.

Please notify me if I have misunderstood anything about your situation.

According to your concern, the issue is likely an expected behavior in Excel PivotTables. PivotTables don’t behave like a normal table where you can sort any column independently. In a PivotTable with multiple Row fields, Excel builds a parent-child hierarchy:

• In Pivot table, Excel sets the leftmost/first Row field is the parent.
• Any other Row fields to the right are children, and can only be sorted within their parent group, not across the entire PivotTable. Otherwise, it would break the grouping.
• Therefore, if your current first column is a grouped field (e.g., date + locations + representatives, etc.), Excel will restrict sorting for columns to the right.

You can find more clearly explanation and step-by-step guidance in these links:

• Sort data in a PivotTable or PivotChart - Microsoft Support
• Fix Pivot Table Sorting Problems; Best Pivot Sorting Tips (Note: We're providing this information as a convenience to you. The sites are not controlled by Microsoft and we can't make any representations regarding quality, safety or suitability of any software or information found there. Please make sure you completely understand the risk before retrieving any suggestions from the above link) 

I hope this helps you move forward smoothly. If you have more questions or need further clarification, feel free to leave a comment here and I’ll be happy to continue supporting you.

Thank you for your patience and understanding, and I look forward to assisting you further.

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