A pivot table summarizes millions of rows into totals, averages, and counts by category—without writing formulas for every combination.
Create
Insert → PivotTable → select Table/range → drag fields to Rows, Columns, Values, Filters.
Values
Sum of Revenue, Count of Orders, Average Ticket—change aggregation in Value Field Settings.
Refresh
Right-click pivot → Refresh when source data changes. Use Table source so range expands.
Important interview questions and answers
- Q: Pivot purpose?
A: Interactive aggregation and exploration. - Q: Refresh?
A: Reloads data from source into cache.
Self-check
- What four areas do you drag fields to?
- When must you refresh?
Tip: Right-click pivot → Number Format once instead of formatting individual cells.
Interview prep
- Pivot purpose?
Summarize data by categories without manual formulas.