You can have Numbers create categories or subcategories based on values in one or more columns in the table. Or you can assemble rows into categories by manually inserting category rows between table rows. You can create categories based on adjacent or nonadjacent selected table rows.
When you create categories by manually inserting a category row, a new column (the category value column) is added to the table to display unique placeholder values for each category. The placeholder value is used in the category row to identify the category.
You may want to hide the column (click its reference tab’s pop-up menu and choose Hide Column). To change the placeholder name in a category row to a more meaningful name, edit the name as you would text in any cell.
When you categorize a table using the values in a column, Numbers creates a different category for each unique value in the column. The column whose value you use to create categories is the category value column. All rows containing the same value in the category value column are placed together in a category. The shared value is used as the category name in the category row.
If you change a value in the category value column, the row moves into a different category if the value exists elsewhere in the category value column; otherwise, a new category is created for the new value.
You can optionally hide a category value column, but you may want to leave the column visible in case you need to change values in it. Also, you may not want to edit the name in the category row. When you change a category row’s name, all the values in the category value column for the category are replaced with the new name, overwriting other values in the cells.
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To divide a table’s rows at a particular place, choose Insert Category from the reference tab pop-up menu for the bottommost row in the category you want to create. For example, to divide a 9-row table into two categories with the first 5 rows in the first category, choose Insert Category from the pop-up menu for row 5.
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To place a range of adjacent or nonadjacent rows into a category, select the rows and then choose “Create Category from Selected Rows” from the reference tab’s pop-up menu for one of the selected rows.
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To categorize rows with the same value in a particular column, choose “Categorize by This Column” from the reference tab pop-up menu for the column. When a value in the column changes, its row is placed in a different category based on its new cell value.
You can also use the Reorganize window. Click in the table and then click Reorganize in the toolbar or choose Show More Options from a reference tab's pop-up menu to open the Reorganize window. Click the Categories disclosure triangle to reveal the categorizing controls. From the first pop-up menu, choose the name of the column you want to use as a category value column.
Table categories are created based on unique values in the chosen column.
If the category value column contains dates, you can choose a date unit from the second pop-up menu.
The date unit you select controls how the rows are categorized as well as how the category is identified in the category row.
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To create a subcategory, open the Reorganize window, and click the Add (+) button adjacent to the category or subcategory below which you want the new subcategory. Then choose the column whose values you want to use for the subcategory.
Each subcategory has its own category row in the table.
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To add a category or subcategory above or below an existing category or subcategory, click the menu arrow in the reference tab of the category row for the category or subcategory and choose Add Category Above or Add Category Below.
If you delete a value from a category value column, its row is placed into a category with blank values in the column.
If you delete all rows from a category, the category is removed from the table.