EXCEL SPREADSHEET WILL NOT SORT ALL ROWS

Hunter, Linda 20 Reputation points
2026-11-02T20:34:21.73+00:00

I have a spreadsheet with 672 rows. The first 160 are green and white, the rest are plain white. Don't know if this an issue or not. I can only get the first 160 to sort. I am using custom sort and 4 levels. Any assistance would be appreciated.

Thank you!

Microsoft 365 and Office | Excel | For home | Other
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AI answer

2026-11-02T20:35:10.8433333+00:00

The green-and-white section likely ends at row 160 because it is an Excel table; resize that table to include all 672 rows, then apply the four-level sort.

Extend the table through row 672

  1. Click any cell within the green-and-white section.
  2. Check whether the Table Design tab appears on the ribbon.
    • If it appears, those rows are an Excel table. Alternating green-and-white shading is commonly the table’s Banded Rows formatting.^1^
  3. Select Table Design > Resize Table.
  4. Change the range so it includes:
    • The existing header row.
    • Every required column.
    • All data through row 672.
    For example, if the data occupies columns A through H and headers are in row 1, use A1:H672.
  5. Select OK. The table formatting should extend through row 672, confirming that those rows are now part of the table.^2^
  6. Click inside the resized table and select Data > Sort.
  7. Verify My data has headers, configure the four levels in the required priority order, and select OK.

The green/white formatting itself does not prevent sorting; it helps identify where the current table ends.

If no Table Design tab appears

The data is an ordinary range rather than a table. Explicitly select the complete block instead of allowing Excel to detect it:

  1. Select the entire data range, including headers and all rows—for example, A1:H672.
  2. Select Data > Sort.
  3. If Excel displays a Sort Warning, choose Expand the selection so entire rows move together.^3^
  4. Set My data has headers correctly.
  5. Recreate the four sort levels and select OK.

Also inspect the boundary around rows 160–161 for a completely blank row or column that visually separates the two sections. Keep the full range selected when sorting. Unhide any hidden rows first, because hidden rows do not move during a row sort.^4^


References

  1. Overview of Excel tables | Microsoft Support
  2. Resize a table by adding or removing rows and columns in Excel
  3. Sorting the way a person would do it - Microsoft Q&A
  4. [Web](https://support.microsoft.com/excel/sort-data-in-a-range-or-table-in-excel#sort-from-left-to-right)
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