If you’re already using colour to organise your Excel spreadsheets, here’s some good news — you can filter by that colour too. Excel filter by colour lets you instantly show only the rows that match a specific colour — whether that’s a background fill or a font colour. It’s one of those features that feels like it should be complicated, but it really isn’t.
First, a Quick Note About Header Rows
Before we dive in, just make sure your table or list has a header row — that’s the row at the top with your column labels like “Task”, “Status”, and so on. Excel puts the filter drop-down arrows in that row. If you don’t have one, Excel will treat your first row of data as the header, which means it won’t show up in your filtered results. Easily avoided!
Switching the Filter On
If you haven’t already got filtering switched on, you can enable it in two ways:
- Go to the Home tab and use the Sort & Filter button
- Or head to the Data tab and click Filter
Either way, you’ll see small drop-down arrows appear in your header row. That’s your cue that filtering is ready to go.
Filtering by Background Colour
Click the drop-down arrow in the column you want to filter. You’ll see a Filter by Colour option roughly in the middle of the menu. Hover over it and Excel shows you all the colours it’s found in that column. Click the one you want and — that’s it. Your list instantly narrows down to just those rows.
You can switch to a different colour at any point by going back into the same drop-down. Just bear in mind you can only filter by one colour at a time.
Clearing the Filter
When you’re done, clearing the filter is just as straightforward. Go back to the drop-down and either:
- Click the colour again to deselect it
- Or choose Clear Filter From [Column Name]
Job done. Your full list is back.
Does This Work in Excel on the Web?
Yes! Excel on the web has the same Filter by Colour option. The steps are identical, so if you’re working in a browser rather than the desktop app, you’re not missing out.
Filtering by Font Colour
Here’s a bonus that catches people out: Filter by Colour works on font colour too, not just background fills. So if you’ve highlighted certain cells by changing the text colour rather than the background, Excel can filter by that as well. Same process, same menu — just look for the font colour options when you hover over Filter by Colour.
A Simple Feature With Real Practical Value
This isn’t a feature you’ll use every day — but if you colour code your spreadsheets to flag priorities, track progress, or categorise tasks, it becomes genuinely useful. Rather than scrolling through to find all your red “Urgent” rows, you can pull them up in two clicks.
Simple, quick, and surprisingly satisfying.
Created with the help of Claude AI from an original transcript.
YouTube Videos
Excel Flash Fill – Split Names, Create Emails & More in Seconds
How to Use Excel Sparklines to Spot Trends at a Glance
Excel Paste Special Values – Copy Exactly What You See on Screen
Already Colour Code Your Excel Data? Here’s How to Filter by Colour
Related Excel Tips Posts
Do You Know All the Excel Flash Fill Tricks?
Excel Sparklines: The Tiny Charts Making a Big Difference
Excel Paste Values – Get Exactly What You See, Every Time
Why Your Colour-Coded Excel Data Deserves a Better Filter (current post)
Recent Posts
- Why Your Colour-Coded Excel Data Deserves a Better Filter
If you’re already using colour to organise your Excel spreadsheets, here’s some good news — you can filter by that colour too. Excel filter by colour lets you instantly show only the rows that match a specific colour — whether that’s a background fill or a font colour. It’s one of those features that feels… Read more: Why Your Colour-Coded Excel Data Deserves a Better Filter - Excel Paste Values – Get Exactly What You See, Every Time
If you’ve ever copied something in Excel and ended up with a completely different result than you expected, you’ve probably fallen foul of one of Excel’s little quirks. The good news is that once you understand Excel Paste Values, you’ll know exactly how to handle it – and it only takes a couple of extra… Read more: Excel Paste Values – Get Exactly What You See, Every Time - Excel Sparklines: The Tiny Charts Making a Big Difference
If you’ve ever stared at a column of numbers and thought “I just want to see the pattern” — Excel Sparklines are about to become your new favourite thing. These miniature charts sit inside a single cell, right next to your data, giving you an instant visual snapshot without the faff of building a full… Read more: Excel Sparklines: The Tiny Charts Making a Big Difference - Do You Know All the Excel Flash Fill Tricks?
If you’ve ever exported data and thought “why is everything jumbled together in one column?”, Excel Flash Fill is about to become your new best friend. It’s one of those features that looks impressive but is actually really simple to use — and once you know it, you’ll find yourself reaching for it again and… Read more: Do You Know All the Excel Flash Fill Tricks? - Loop Tasks in Microsoft To Do — Your New Favourite Shortcut
If you’ve been juggling Microsoft Loop tasks in To Do alongside a separate task list, I’ve got good news for you. You don’t have to. Loop and Microsoft To Do can work together, syncing your tasks automatically so you’ve only got one list to manage. It’s one of those little connections within Microsoft 365 that… Read more: Loop Tasks in Microsoft To Do — Your New Favourite Shortcut
excel filter by colour, filter by colour, how to filter data by colour in excel, excel filter by color