SORT Function - Free Excel Practice Online

This free, interactive exercise teaches you SORT Function in Excel through 6 hands-on steps. Instead of watching a video, you type the real formula into a live spreadsheet grid and get instant feedback on every answer. It is part of the Other Excel Skills track and works right in your browser - no Excel install, no download, and no signup.

Practising SORT Function this way builds the muscle memory that transfers straight to using Excel at work, in interviews, or for certification prep. Work through the steps above, then keep going with the next lesson to build a complete, free Excel practice course.

What you'll practice in this SORT Function lesson

1. Spill the names A–Z without touching the source. In E2: =SORT(A2:A6). - SORT returns Chen, Kim, Lee, Ortiz, Patel and spills them down from E2. The original column stays in the order you typed it.
2. Now Z–A. The third argument is the order: =SORT(A2:A6,,-1). - 1 (or omitted) is ascending. -1 is descending. The empty second argument means 'sort by the first column of the array,' which is all we have here.
3. Sort the sales column smallest to largest: =SORT(C2:C6). - Numbers sort the same way as text. 150, 420, 610, 800, 900 spill from E2. The names in column A do not move — this is a copy, not a Data-tab sort.
4. Keep the rows together. Sort the whole block A2:C6 by sales (column 3), smallest first: =SORT(A2:C6,3,1). - sort_index 3 means 'use the third column of the array as the key.' Ortiz/North/150 comes out on top, and the name stays on the same row as the 150.
5. Same block, highest sales first: =SORT(A2:C6,3,-1). - Kim/West/900 lands in E2. This is the dashboard version of Data → Z–A, and it recalculates when a sale changes.
6. Sort the East rows only. Wrap FILTER in SORT: =SORT(FILTER(A2:A6,B2:B6="East")). - FILTER first pulls Lee and Chen. SORT then orders them A–Z, so Chen spills above Lee. Two formulas, one cell, source left alone.

SORT Function practice - FAQ