Use Numbers smart categories

1 Select a table

Open Numbers and open a spreadsheet that contains a table, or create one, like this simple example that lists home contents by room for insurance purposes. Click the table.

2 Organise by category

There are several ways to apply smart categories to this table and the simplest and quickest is to click the ‘Add Category’ button in the toolbar and then select a column.

3 View your data

Smart categories organise the data by the selected column to make it easier to see. It also adds functions on the right, which in this case shows sub-totals for each room.

4 Collapse the view

One of the nice features about smart categories is that the rows can be collapsed to give you a better overview of the important information in the table. Click the arrows.

5 The Categories inspector

Click ‘Organise’ at the end of the toolbar and select Categories. Use the controls to change the view, or switch off categories to go back.

6 Select a function

It depends on the data, but Numbers may insert a function in the categories row. Click the cell and choose the function. If no function is added, click a cell and add one.