Can I reference cell in one worksheet on a different worksheet

Question

Can I reference cell in one worksheet on a different worksheet

I can't seem to find any information that will help me with this challenge. I would like to take information from one worksheet and use it in another worksheet without having to keep doing the copy/paste thing. I have 2 similar but different worksheets that I have to keep updated all the time, and I would like to just enter the data in ONE of the sheets to have it update in the other one. I'm a died in the wool mac user now, but this function was really easy with Excel. I'm trying NOT to have to use Excel after finally learning as much about Numbers as I have now. So if I can get worksheet A (product info) and worksheet B (sales info) to talk to each other, my workload can be more efficient. Please keep the answers "dumbed down" for someone who is not really technical with this kind of stuff if you could? Thanks in advance!

Sharon

MacBook Pro (15-inch Early 2011), OS X Yosemite (10.10.1)

Posted on Mar 26, 2015 9:48 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

t quinn

Level 5

7,043 points

Mar 26, 2015 10:45 AM in response to 2rollinanglers

Hi 2rollin,

This is possible within Numbers only if the sheets are in the same document. You could have your input table on its sheet and your product info table and sales info table on different sheets. If that will work for you then it is easy. Note that in Numbers you can have many tables on the same sheet if that appeals.

If they are separate, then you would need to run a script to import the data. There are Applescript gurus on this forum that could help but they would need to know specific info regarding your setup.

quinn

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Answer 2

Mar 26, 2015 2:52 PM in response to t quinn

But how do you do it if it's in the same document?

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Answer 3

t quinn

Level 5

7,043 points

Mar 26, 2015 4:41 PM in response to venusinorbit

Hi venus,

The same way you would reference any cell from another.

Say I want A2 of Table 1 of Sheet 1 to reference B2 of Table 2 of Sheet 2:

In A2 I type "=", navigate to Sheet 2::Table 2::B2 and click in the cell. Or I could just type "=Sheet 2::Table 2::B2" in A2 and be done.

Does that make sense?

quinn

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Answer 4

Mar 26, 2015 6:08 PM in response to t quinn

Quinn,

Thanks, that does make sense, and now I have to figure out how to make these very different documents into one without more confusion and such. That would be MY internal problem and not one that is something that can be figured out here. I'm just amazed that excel and access could play nicely together and do all this between worksheets, but numbers, for all the wonders that Apple generally can do over and above anything Microsoft, still hasn't managed to come up with! Kinda stupid really... Thanks again for the help.

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Answer 5

Yellowbox

Level 7

20,383 points

Apr 1, 2015 5:04 AM in response to 2rollinanglers

Hi 2rollin,

excel and access could play nicely together and do all this between worksheets

Yes, but I recall the many times when a colleague sent me what they thought was the final Excel document but they did not include the supporting documents that it needed. Formulas were bereft of the original data and were not able to link and update. I think that Numbers, with no links between documents, has got this right.

Regards,

Ian.

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Answer 6

Tim3030

Level 1

12 points

Apr 1, 2015 11:55 AM in response to t quinn

Thank you. I thought it must be possible, and I have spent ages trying to work it out for myself. Now I will try your method...

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