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How to force user to select data from a list in Excel?

In some cases, you just want the users to enter or select data from a list you specify in the sheet, are there any way to solve this task? In fact, you can create a drop down list by Excel’s Data Validation utility to force users select data from such a list.

Force users to select data from a list


arrow blue right bubble Force users to select data from a list

To force users to select data from a list, you can create a list of data you want users to select first, and then apply the Data Validation feature to create a drop down list from the data you have specified.

1. Create a list of data you need in column F.
doc force user to select from list 1

2. Select a cell or a range you want to force users to select data from a list, and click Data > Data Validation. See screenshot:
doc force user to select from list 2

3. In the Data Validation dialog, under Settings tab, choose List from Allow drop down list, and select the list you have created in step 1 to the Source textbox. See screenshot:
doc force user to select from list 3

4. Click OK. Now the users only can select data from the list, if users type other data in the cells, there is a warning dialog popping out.

doc force user to select from list 4
doc force user to select from list 5

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Comments (2)
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This comment was minimized by the moderator on the site
Yes, but it is still possible to delete the cell. How to restrict the user to delete cell data and force to enter data only from drop-down?
This comment was minimized by the moderator on the site
ah so much easier explained than other articles, thanks!
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