Designing a New Table

Step 1. Select the cells.

Select the cells you want to include in your data table.

Step 2. Insert Table

From the Insert Tab, then select Tables group, and choose Table. In the Create Table Dialog box, check the checkbox to the left of My Table has Headers. Doing so will format the first row of the table as a header for each column. Choose OK.

Step 3. Enter Headers.

Excel creates a header row with the default names Column1, Column2, and so on. Replace the column header text in the first cell of each column with your descriptive header text. If your first column is also considered a header, check the checkbox to the left of First Column in the Table Tools Design Tab. Type new and descriptive names for each header cell.

Step 4. Add Your Data.

Type your data into your table.

Fixing Existing Simple Data Tables

If you are trying to improve the accessibility of an existing simple data table in Excel be sure the table has been formatted as a table.

Step 1. Format As Table

Select all the cells of your table then choose Format As Table from the Styles Ribbon on the Home Tab at the top of the page. A drop down of table style choices will appear. Remember to  choose colors  carefully when selecting your style.

Note: If you want to design a custom table style, choose the option for New Table Style. You can choose your own style and a custom option will be saved to the Format As Table Options. 

Step 2. Check My Table has Headers

Once you choose a style the Format as Table dialog box will appear. Check the checkbox to the left of My Table has Headers. Doing so will format the first row of the table as a header. Choose OK.

Step 3. Specify Other Header Types

Place your cursor in the newly formatted table and a new Table Tools Tab should appear at the top of the screen. Select the Table Tools Tab and notice the checkbox to the left of Header Row is now checked. If your first column is also considered a header, check the checkbox to the left of First Column. 

Step 4. Enter Table Name

In the Table Tools Design Tab, enter a Table name in the field provided. The table name should not have any spaces and should not be the same as any other table name in the workbook.

Coding Tables for Screen Readers

In order for screen readers to read the data tables in Excel, you need to add a piece of code to the Name Manager to tell it how the table is set up. To prepare this code, you need to answer some questions before entering the code.

Is this the first and only table on the worksheet?

If yes, write down the number 1. If no, write down the number of the table. Start counting your tables from the top of the spreadsheet. 

What are the cell addresses for the top left and bottom right cells?

The cell address is made up of the column and row coordinates. Columns have letters associated to them and rows have numbers. To find the cell addresses for the table, locate the top left most corner of the table abd the bottom right cell including the table headers. Note which column letters and row numbers you are in.

For example, in the picture below the first cell in the table is located in the first column and the second row. The cell address is A2. The bottom right corner of the table is in cell C8. Once you select a cell, the cell address will also appear in a box in the top right corner of the spreadsheet.

What worksheet is the table located on ?

Note the number of the worksheet the table is on. Count left to right in the workbook.

Don't forget to give your worksheets descriptive names.

Does this table have a column header, a row header, or both?

Column Header

The top row has the header information. This type of header is referred to as a "ColumnTitleRegion" in Excel.

Row Header

The first column has the header information. This type of header is referred to as a "RowTitleRegion" in Excel.

Both Column and Row Headers

Both the first row and the first column have header information. This type of header is referred to as a "TitleRegion" in Excel.

Putting Together the Title Region Codes

The Title Region code is made up from the answers to the above Questions.

[Type of Header][Table Number].[Top Left Cell Address].[Bottom Right Cell Address].[Worksheet Number]

The code should not have any spaces between words, numbers or punctuation. Capitalize the first letters in the words Title, Region, Column and Row. This code is case sensitive.

Add Title Region Code to Name Manager

Add Title Region Code to Name Manager

To add the Title Region code to the Name Manager. Select the top left cell in the table. Navigate to and select the Formulas tab in the Ribbon. In the Define Names group, choose the Name Manager option.

In the Name Manager dialog, choose the New button.

In New name dialog, type in the Title Region code in the Name edit box. Ignore other fields in the New name dialog. Choose OK button.