Top 6 # Power Query Trong Excel Xem Nhiều Nhất, Mới Nhất 6/2023 # Top Trend

Bottom line: Learn how this awesome feature of Excel and Power BI called Power Query will help you automate the process of importing, transforming, and cleansing your data to save a TON of time with your job.

Skill level: Beginner

Video Tutorial

Download the Sample Files

The CSV files I use in the video are available for download below. You will need to extract the files out of the zip file.

Introduction to Power Query

In this tutorial I provide an introductory explanation of Power Query. You will learn why this is my new favorite Excel tool for working with data, and how it can help automate processes and save you time!

The Power Query Data Machine

I was watching a TV show on how things are made, and they were explaining how a depositor machine worked in a pastry factory.

The basics of a depositor machine are:

You add ingredients to it.

Change some settings.

And it magically creates pastries (cookies, donuts, biscuits) that are ready for baking.

Once the dials are set, the process can be repeated over-and-over again to make perfect pastries every time. Getting hungry…? 🙂

You add your data sources (Excel tables, CSV files, database tables, webpages, etc.)

Press buttons in the Power Query Editor window to transform your data.

Output that data to your worksheet or data model (PowerPivot) that is ready for pivot tables or reporting.

If you have used macros to transform your data, you can think of this as a much easier alternative to VBA that does NOT require coding.

Common Data Tasks Made Easy

Do you work with data that has been exported from a system of record? This could be a general ledger, accounting, ERP, CRM, chúng tôi or any reporting system that contains data.

If so, you probably spend a lot of time transforming or re-shaping your data to create additional reports, pivot tables, or charts.

These data transformations could include tasks like:

Remove columns, rows, blanks

Convert data types – text, numbers, dates

Split or merge columns

Sort & filter columns

Add calculated columns

Aggregate or summarize data

Find & replace text

Unpivot data to use for pivot tables

Do any of these tasks sound familiar? If so, then they probably also sound boring, repetitive, and time consuming. 🙂 Believe me, I’ve spent the better part of my career doing these tasks and trying to figure out faster ways to get them done.

Fortunately, Power Query has buttons that automate all these tasks!

Overview of the Power Query Ribbon

Starting in Excel 2016 for Windows, Power Query has been fully integrated into Excel. It is now on the Data tab of the Ribbon in the Get & Transform group.

In Excel 2010 and 2013 for Windows, Power Query is a free add-in. Once installed, the Power Query tab will be visible in the Excel Ribbon.

You use the buttons in the Data or Power Query tab to get your source data. Again, your data could be stored in Excel files, csv files, Access, SQL server database, SharePoint, chúng tôi Dynamics CRM, Facebook, Wikipedia, websites, and more.

Once you have specified where your data is coming from, you then use the Power Query Editor window to make transformations to the data.

The buttons in the Power Query Editor Window allow you to transform your data.

Think about some of those tasks you do repeatedly as you browse the buttons in the image above. Each time you press a button your actions (steps) are recorded, and you can quickly re-apply the steps when you receive new data by refreshing the query.

You can also modify existing queries and refresh your output tables with the changes or updated data.

Data Transformation Examples

Here are a few examples of what Power Query can do with your data.

Unpivot Data for Pivot Tables

My favorite feature of Power Query is it’s ability to Unpivot data. This is a technique used to get your data ready for the source of a pivot table. This is also referred to as normalizing your data to get it in a tabular format.

The data might start out looking something like the following.

And you want the end result to look like this.

Here is an article and video on exactly How to Unpivot Your Data with Power Query.

Checkout my article on how to structure your source data for a pivot table if you are unfamiliar with why your data needs to look like this for a pivot table.

Append (Combine) Tables with Power Query

The Append feature of Power Query allows you to combine multiple tables (stack them vertically) to create one large table. It can do this with multiple tables in one file, or it can pull in data from a bunch of different files/sources.

Let’s say you have a folder that contains CSV or Excel files with report data for each month. Throw all those files in the Power Query machine, and it will spit out one nice table that you can then use to create pivot tables and charts.

If the data in those reports also needs to be transformed (remove rows, split columns, unpivot, etc.), then Power Query can handle that in the same process.

Once it is setup, all you have to do is hit the refresh button every month when a new file is added to the folder and the rows will be added to your output table.

How awesome is that! 🙂

Merge Tables – A VLOOKUP Alternative

Power Query has the ability to merge or join tables. This can be used as an alternative to VLOOKUP or INDEX/MATCH formulas.

Let’s say you have this data table of sales records, and you are using a VLOOKUP to bring in information about the product based on the name of the product sold. Your product group information is located in another table on a different sheet or workbook.

Using VLOOKUP formulas is great, but it can often mean adding thousands of formulas to your workbook. Which increases the file size and calculation time.

Create Custom Functions

However, Power Query can be programmed to create custom functions. This gives you seemingly unlimited potential to transform your data in just about any way possible.

It is based on the M language, and most of the functions are very similar to writing a formula in Excel. This also makes it more user friendly and easier to learn the code.

This new language and set of functions means there is a lot to learn, but I consider that the fun and challenging part. Plus, employers of the future will definitely be looking for employees with Power Query skills.

Power Query Records Your Steps & Automates Processes

Power Query not only makes all these tasks easier, but it also records your steps so you do NOT have to do them over-and-over again. It will save you a lot of time if you are preparing the same data every day, week, or month.

It also does a pretty good job of handling errors. If the structure of your source data changes, Power Query will tell you what step it broke at and allow you to fix it. This makes maintenance easy and you don’t have to completely redo your process when something changes.

You can use Power Query to get your data ready for use in pivot tables, charts, and dashboard reports. This is a critical step in the process of summarizing and analyzing data.

The Power Query Machine & Power BI

Well, it can’t exactly make cookies, but Power Query is a pretty awesome tool! It will save you a ton of time when transforming your data.

Power Query is just one piece of the suite of Power BI (Business Intelligence) products from Microsoft.

If we go back to the analogy of baking cookies in a factory, you can think of Power Query as the first step in the assembly line. Once the cookies are formed, we then need to bake them (Pivot Tables, PowerPivot) and then package them for presentation (Power View, Power Map, Charts, Dashboards, etc.)

How Do I Get Power Query?

The other nice part is that Power Query is now built into Excel starting with Excel 2016 for Windows. If you are on Excel 2010 or 2013 then Power Query is a free add-in.

I have a dedicated page that will help you determine if you have the right version of Excel to get Power Query. It also provides complete installation instructions and the download link.

Complete Guide to Installing Power Query

To give you an idea of the importance of this tool, Power Query was fully integrated into Excel in Excel 2016 for Windows, and is on the Data tab of the Ribbon.

It is also known as Get & Transform, although the term Power Query is most common.

Additional Resources

This article has provided an overview of the basics of Power Query that should help you understand some of the major features. Power Query has a ton of features and there is definitely a lot to learn.

I will be sharing more how-to articles and videos in the coming weeks. Here are a few resources that will help you get started.

How to Unpivot Your Data with Power Query + Video Tutorial

Free Training Webinar on the Power Tools

Right now I’m running a free training webinar on all of the Power Tools in Excel. This includes Power Query, Power Pivot, Power BI, pivot tables, macros & VBA, and more.

It’s called The Modern Excel Blueprint. During the webinar I explain what these tools are and how they can fit into your workflow.

You will also learn how to become the Excel Hero of your organization, that go-to gal or guy that everyone relies on for Excel help and fun projects.

If not, do you think it would be useful for you? Are you doing any of the tasks I mentioned manually right now?

I will be creating more how-to articles and videos on Power Query in the future, so I’m interested to know what you want to learn.

Thank you! 🙂

Tạo một công thức đơn giản

Để xem ví dụ về công thức đơn giản, chúng ta hãy chuyển đổi một giá trị văn bản thành kiểu chữ thích hợp bằng cách dùng công thức Text.Proper() .

Trong thanh công thức Trình soạn thảo Truy vấn, hãy nhập = Text.Proper(“text value”), và nhấn Enter hoặc chọn biểu tượng Enter.

Power Query cho bạn thấy kết quả trong ngăn kết quả công thức.

Để xem kết quả trong trang tính Excel, hãy chọn Đóng & Tải.

Kết quả sẽ trông như thế này trong một trang tính:

Bạn cũng có thể tạo công thức truy vấn nâng cao trong Trình soạn thảo Truy vấn.

Tạo công thức nâng cao

Để xem ví dụ về công thức nâng cao, chúng ta hãy chuyển đổi văn bản trong một cột thành kiểu chữ thích hợp bằng cách kết hợp nhiều công thức. Bạn có thể sử dụng Ngôn ngữ Công thức Power Query để kết hợp nhiều công thức thành các bước truy vấn có kết quả tập dữ liệu. Có thể nhập kết quả vào một trang tính Excel.

Chẳng hạn, giả sử bạn có một bảng Excel chứa các tên sản phẩm mà bạn muốn chuyển thành kiểu chữ thích hợp.

Bảng ban đầu trông như thế này:

Và bạn muốn bảng kết quả trông giống như thế này:

Chúng ta hãy xem qua các bước công thức truy vấn để thay đổi bảng ban đầu sao cho các giá trị trong cột Tên Sản phẩm có kiểu chữ thích hợp.

Ví dụ về truy vấn nâng cao bằng Trình soạn thảo Nâng cao

Tạo một chuỗi các bước công thức truy vấn bắt đầu bằng câu lệnh let. Vui lòng lưu ý rằng Ngôn ngữ Công thức Power Query có phân biệt chữ hoa, chữ thường.

Mỗi bước công thức truy vấn xây dựng trên bước trước đó bằng cách tham chiếu đến một bước theo tên.

Tạo đầu ra cho công thức truy vấn bằng câu lệnh in. Thông thường, bước truy vấn sau cùng được dùng làm kết quả tập dữ liệu cuối cùng.

Bước 1 – Mở Trình soạn thảo Nâng cao

Trong Trình soạn thảo Truy vấn, hãy chọn Trình soạn thảo Nâng cao.

Bạn sẽ thấy Trình soạn thảo Nâng cao.

Bước 2 – Xác định nguồn ban đầu

Trong Trình soạn thảo Nâng cao:

Dùng câu lệnh let gán Source = công thức Excel.CurrentWorkbook(). Thao tác này sẽ sử dụng bảng Excel làm nguồn dữ liệu. Để biết thêm thông tin về công thức Excel.CurrentWorkbook(), hãy xem Excel.CurrentWorkbook.

Gán Source cho kết quả in.

letSource = Excel.CurrentWorkbook(){[Name="Orders"]}[Content] inSource

Truy vấn nâng cao của bạn sẽ trông giống như thế này trong Trình soạn thảo Nâng cao.

Để xem kết quả trong một trang tính:

Bấm Xong.

Trong ribbon Trình soạn thảo Truy vấn, bấm Đóng & Tải.

Kết quả sẽ trông như thế này trong một trang tính:

Bước 3 – Tăng cấp hàng đầu tiên thành tiêu đề

Để chuyển đổi các giá trị trong cột Tên Sản phẩm thành kiểu chữ thích hợp, trước tiên bạn cần tăng cấp hàng đầu tiên thành tiêu đề cột. Bạn thực hiện điều này trong Trình soạn thảo Nâng cao:

Thêm #”First Row as Header” = công thức Table.PromoteHeaders() vào các bước công thức truy vấn của bạn và tham chiếu đến Source là nguồn dữ liệu. Để biết thêm thông tin về công thức Table.PromoteHeaders(), hãy xem Table.PromoteHeaders.

Gán #”First Row as Header” cho kết quả in.

let Source = Excel.CurrentWorkbook(){[Name="Orders"]}[Content], #"First Row as Header" = Table.PromoteHeaders(Source) in #"First Row as Header"

Kết quả sẽ trông như thế này trong một trang tính:

Bước 4 – Thay đổi mỗi giá trị trong một cột thành kiểu chữ thích hợp

Để chuyển đổi mỗi giá trị trong cột Tên Sản phẩm thành kiểu chữ thích hợp, bạn dùng Table.TransformColumns() và tham chiếu đến bước công thức truy vấn “First Row as Header”. Bạn thực hiện điều này trong Trình soạn thảo Nâng cao:

Thêm #”Capitalized Each Word” = công thức Table.TransformColumns() vào các bước công thức truy vấn của bạn và tham chiếu đến #”First Row as Header” là nguồn dữ liệu. Để biết thêm thông tin về công thức Table.TransformColumns(), hãy xem Table.TransformColumns.

Gán #”Capitalized Each Word” cho kết quả in.

let Source = Excel.CurrentWorkbook(){[Name="Orders"]}[Content], #"First Row as Header" = Table.PromoteHeaders(Source),#"Capitalized Each Word" = Table.TransformColumns(#"First Row as Header",{{"ProductName", Text.Proper}}) in#"Capitalized Each Word"

Kết quả cuối cùng sẽ thay đổi mỗi giá trị trong cột Tên Sản phẩm thành kiểu chữ thích hợp và trông giống như thế này trong trang tính:

Với Ngôn ngữ Công thức Power Query bạn có thể tạo các truy vấn dữ liệu từ đơn giản đến nâng cao để khám phá, kết hợp và tinh chỉnh dữ liệu. Để tìm hiểu thêm về Power Query, hãy xem Trợ giúp Microsoft Power Query cho Excel.

In this tutorial, we will look at how you can join tables in Excel based on one or more common columns by using Power Query and Merge Tables Wizard.

Combining data from multiple tables is one of the most daunting tasks in Excel. If you decide to do it manually, you may spend hours only to find out that you’ve messed up important information. If you are an experienced Excel pro, then you can possibly rely on VLOOKUP and INDEX MATCH formulas. A macro, you believe, could do the job in no time, if only you knew how. The good news for all Excel users – Power Query or Merge Tables Wizard can be your time-saver. The choice is yours.

How to join tables with Excel Power Query

In simple terms, Power Query (also known as Get & Transform in Excel 2016 and Excel 2019) is a tool to combine, clean and transform data from multiple sources into the format you need such as a table, pivot table or pivot chart.

Among other things, Power Query can join 2 tables into 1 or combine data from multiple tables by matching data in columns, which is the focus of this tutorial.

For the results to meet your expectations, please keep in mind the following things:

Power Query is a built-in feature in Excel 2016 and Excel 2019, but it can also be downloaded in Excel 2010 and Excel 2013 and used as an add-in. In earlier versions, some windows may look different from the images in this tutorial that were captured in Excel 2016.

For the tables to be combined correctly, they should have at least one common column (also referred to as a common id or key column or unique identifier). Also, the common columns should contain only unique values, with no repeats.

The source tables can be located on the same sheet or in different worksheets.

Unlike formulas, Power Query does not pull data from one table to another. It creates a new table that combines data from the original tables.

The resulting table does not update automatically. You should explicitly tell Excel to do this. Please see how to refresh a merged table.

Source data

As an example, let’s join 3 tables based on the common columns Order ID and Seller. Please note that our tables have different numbers of rows, and although table 1 has duplicates in the Seller column, table 3 contains only unique entries.

Our task is to map the data in table 1 with the relevant records from the other two tables, and combine all the data into a new table like this:

Table 1 is named Orders

Table 2 is named Products

Table 3 is named Commissions

Create Power Query connections

Not to clutter your workbook with copies of your original tables, we are going to convert them into connections, do the merge within the Power Query Editor, and then load only the resulting table.

To save a table as a connection in Power Query, here’s what you do:

Select your first table (Orders) or any cell in that table.

This will create a connection with the name of your table/range and display that connection in the Queries & Connections pane that appears on the right-hand side of your workbook.

Repeat the above steps for all other tables you want to merge (two more tables, Products and Commissions, in our case).

When finished, you will see all the connections on the pane:

Merge two connections into one table

With the connections in place, let’s see how you can join two tables into one:

In the Merge dialog box, do the following:

Select your 1st table (Orders) from the first drop-down.

Select your 2nd table (Products) from the second drop-down.

In the Join Kind drop-down list, leave the default option: Left Outer (all from first, matching from second).

Upon completion of the above steps, the Power Query Editor will show your first table (Orders) with one additional column named like your second table (Products) added to the end. This additional column does not have any values yet, just the word “Table” in all the cells. But don’t feel discouraged, you did everything right, and we are going to fix that in a moment!

Select the columns to add from the second table

At this point, you have a table resembling the one in the screenshot below. To complete the merging process, perform the following steps within the Power Query Editor:

In the box that opens, do this:

Keep the Expand radio button selected.

Unselect all columns, and then select only the column(s) you want to copy from the second table. In this example, we select only the Product column because our first table already has Seller and Order ID.

Uncheck the Use original column name as prefix box (unless you want the column name to be prefixed with the table name from which this column is taken).

As the result, you will get a new table that contains every record from your first table and the additional column(s) from the second table:

If you need to merge only two tables, you may consider the work almost done and go load the resulting table in Excel.

Merge more tables (optional)

In case you have three or more tables to join, there is some more work for you to do. I will outline the steps briefly here, because you have already done all this when joining the first two tables:

Save the table you’ve got in the previous step (shown in the screenshot above) as a connection:

The screenshot below shows my settings:

In this example, we add only the Commission column:

As the result, you get a merged table that consists of the first table, plus the additional columns copied from the other two tables.

Import the merged table to Excel

With the resulting table in the Power Query Editor, there is just one thing left for you to do – load it in your Excel workbook. And it is the easiest part!

In the Import Data dialog box, select Table and New Worksheet options.

A new table combining the data from two or more sources appears in a new worksheet. Congratulations, you did it!

As a finishing touch, you may want to apply the right number format to some columns and maybe change the default table style to your favorite one. After these improvements, my combined table looks very nice:

In the previous example, we were combining tables by matching data in one key column. But there is nothing that would prevent you from selecting two or more column pairs. Here’s how:

After that, perform exactly the same steps as described above, and your tables will be merged by matching values in all the key columns.

Merge Tables Wizard – quick way to join 2 tables in Excel

Now that you are familiar with the inbuilt tool, let me show you our approach to merging tables in Excel.

In this example, we will be combining the same tables that we joined with Power Query a moment ago. I have just added a few more rows to the second table to show you more capabilities of our add-in:

With the Merge Tables Wizard installed in your Excel, here’s what you need to do:

Please notice the Case-sensitive matching box at the top. Select it if you want to treat uppercase and lowercase text in the key columns as different characters. For this example, we don’t need that, so we leave the box unselected.

We select the Seller column because we have more rows in the second table and we want the new seller names to appear in the existing Seller column:

This step is very important because it determines how your tables will be merged. In this example, we go with the default options shown in the screenshot below. But I’d like to draw your attention to the following 2 boxes that can prevent overwriting your existing data in case you’ve chosen to update some columns:

Empty cells only

Only if cells in the lookup table contain data

With the default options, the wizard highlights the newly added rows and adds the Status column. If you don’t want any of that, clear the corresponding boxes in the last step.

To join three and more tables, simply repeat the above steps. Just remember to select the result of a previous merge as your main table.

This example has shown just one scenario that our wizard can handle, but there is much more to it! If you are curious to know other use cases, please check out these examples.

Also, you can download a a trial version of Ultimate Suite for Excel that includes Merge Tables Wizard as well as 60+ other useful tools.

In case you are looking to join tables in some other way, you may find the following resources useful.

Other ways to combine data in Excel:

Merge tables by column headers – join two or more tables based on column names. You can choose to combine all the columns or only the ones you select.

Combine multiple worksheets into one – copy multiple sheets into one summary worksheet. Of course, it’s not manual copy/pasting! You only indicate which worksheets to merge, and our Copy Sheets tool does the rest.

Compare two Excel files – how to compare two tables (worksheets) for differences and merge them into a single sheet.

Bottom line: Learn how this awesome feature of Excel and Power BI called Power Query will help you automate the process of importing, transforming, and cleansing your data to save a TON of time with your job.

Skill level: Beginner

Video Tutorial

Download the Sample Files

The CSV files I use in the video are available for download below. You will need to extract the files out of the zip file.

Introduction to Power Query

In this tutorial I provide an introductory explanation of Power Query.  You will learn why this is my new favorite Excel tool for working with data, and how it can help automate processes and save you time!

The Power Query Data Machine

I was watching a TV show on how things are made, and they were explaining how a depositor machine worked in a pastry factory.

The basics of a depositor machine are:

You add ingredients to it.

Change some settings.

And it magically creates pastries (cookies, donuts, biscuits) that are ready for baking.

Once the dials are set, the process can be repeated over-and-over again to make perfect pastries every time.  Getting hungry…? 🙂

Power Query works in a very similar way!

You add your data sources (Excel tables, CSV files, database tables, webpages, etc.)

Press buttons in the Power Query Editor window to transform your data.

Output that data to your worksheet or data model (PowerPivot) that is ready for pivot tables or reporting.

If you have used macros to transform your data, you can think of this as a much easier alternative to VBA that does NOT require coding.

Common Data Tasks Made Easy

Do you work with data that has been exported from a system of record?  This could be a general ledger, accounting, ERP, CRM, chúng tôi or any reporting system that contains data.

If so, you probably spend a lot of time transforming or re-shaping your data to create additional reports, pivot tables, or charts.

These data transformations could include tasks like:

Remove columns, rows, blanks

Convert data types – text, numbers, dates

Split or merge columns

Sort & filter columns

Add calculated columns

Aggregate or summarize data

Find & replace text

Unpivot data to use for pivot tables

Do any of these tasks sound familiar?  If so, then they probably also sound boring, repetitive, and time consuming. 🙂  Believe me, I’ve spent the better part of my career doing these tasks and trying to figure out faster ways to get them done.

Fortunately, Power Query has buttons that automate all these tasks!

Overview of the Power Query Ribbon

Starting in Excel 2016 for Windows, Power Query has been fully integrated into Excel.  It is now on the Data tab of the Ribbon in the Get & Transform group.

In Excel 2010 and 2013 for Windows, Power Query is a free add-in.  Once installed, the Power Query tab will be visible in the Excel Ribbon.

You use the buttons in the Data or Power Query tab to get your source data.  Again, your data could be stored in Excel files, csv files, Access, SQL server database, SharePoint, chúng tôi Dynamics CRM, Facebook, Wikipedia, websites, and more.

Once you have specified where your data is coming from, you then use the Power Query Editor window to make transformations to the data.

The buttons in the Power Query Editor Window allow you to transform your data.

Think about some of those tasks you do repeatedly as you browse the buttons in the image above.  Each time you press a button your actions (steps) are recorded, and you can quickly re-apply the steps when you receive new data by refreshing the query.

You can also modify existing queries and refresh your output tables with the changes or updated data.

Data Transformation Examples

Here are a few examples of what Power Query can do with your data.

Unpivot Data for Pivot Tables

My favorite feature of Power Query is it’s ability to Unpivot data.  This is a technique used to get your data ready for the source of a pivot table.  This is also referred to as normalizing your data to get it in a tabular format.

The data might start out looking something like the following.

And you want the end result to look like this.

Here is an article and video on exactly How to Unpivot Your Data with Power Query.

Checkout my article on how to structure your source data for a pivot table if you are unfamiliar with why your data needs to look like this for a pivot table.

Append (Combine) Tables with Power Query

The Append feature of Power Query allows you to combine multiple tables (stack them vertically) to create one large table.  It can do this with multiple tables in one file, or it can pull in data from a bunch of different files/sources.

Let’s say you have a folder that contains CSV or Excel files with report data for each month.  Throw all those files in the Power Query machine, and it will spit out one nice table that you can then use to create pivot tables and charts.

If the data in those reports also needs to be transformed (remove rows, split columns, unpivot, etc.), then Power Query can handle that in the same process.

Once it is setup, all you have to do is hit the refresh button every month when a new file is added to the folder and the rows will be added to your output table.

How awesome is that! 🙂

Merge Tables – A VLOOKUP Alternative

Power Query has the ability to merge or join tables.  This can be used as an alternative to VLOOKUP or INDEX/MATCH formulas.

Let’s say you have this data table of sales records, and you are using a VLOOKUP to bring in information about the product based on the name of the product sold.  Your product group information is located in another table on a different sheet or workbook.

Using VLOOKUP formulas is great, but it can often mean adding thousands of formulas to your workbook.  Which increases the file size and calculation time.

Create Custom Functions

However, Power Query can be programmed to create custom functions.  This gives you seemingly unlimited potential to transform your data in just about any way possible.

It is based on the M language, and most of the functions are very similar to writing a formula in Excel.  This also makes it more user friendly and easier to learn the code.

This new language and set of functions means there is a lot to learn, but I consider that the fun and challenging part.  Plus, employers of the future will definitely be looking for employees with Power Query skills.

Power Query Records Your Steps & Automates Processes

Power Query not only makes all these tasks easier, but it also records your steps so you do NOT have to do them over-and-over again.  It will save you a lot of time if you are preparing the same data every day, week, or month.

It also does a pretty good job of handling errors.  If the structure of your source data changes, Power Query will tell you what step it broke at and allow you to fix it.  This makes maintenance easy and you don’t have to completely redo your process when something changes.

You can use Power Query to get your data ready for use in pivot tables, charts, and dashboard reports.  This is a critical step in the process of summarizing and analyzing data.

The Power Query Machine & Power BI

Well, it can’t exactly make cookies, but Power Query is a pretty awesome tool!  It will save you a ton of time when transforming your data.

Power Query is just one piece of the suite of Power BI (Business Intelligence) products from Microsoft.

If we go back to the analogy of baking cookies in a factory, you can think of Power Query as the first step in the assembly line.  Once the cookies are formed, we then need to bake them (Pivot Tables, PowerPivot) and then package them for presentation (Power View, Power Map, Charts, Dashboards, etc.)

How Do I Get Power Query?

The other nice part is that Power Query is now built into Excel starting with Excel 2016 for Windows.  If you are on Excel 2010 or 2013 then Power Query is a free add-in.

I have a dedicated page that will help you determine if you have the right version of Excel to get Power Query.  It also provides complete installation instructions and the download link.

Complete Guide to Installing Power Query

To give you an idea of the importance of this tool, Power Query was fully integrated into Excel in Excel 2016 for Windows, and is on the Data tab of the Ribbon.  

It is also known as Get & Transform, although the term Power Query is most common.

Additional Resources

This article has provided an overview of the basics of Power Query that should help you understand some of the major features.  Power Query has a ton of features and there is definitely a lot to learn.

I will be sharing more how-to articles and videos in the coming weeks.  Here are a few resources that will help you get started.

How to Unpivot Your Data with Power Query + Video Tutorial

Free Training Webinar on the Power Tools

Right now I’m running a free training webinar on all of the Power Tools in Excel. This includes Power Query, Power Pivot, Power BI, pivot tables, macros & VBA, and more.

It’s called The Modern Excel Blueprint. During the webinar I explain what these tools are and how they can fit into your workflow.

You will also learn how to become the Excel Hero of your organization, that go-to gal or guy that everyone relies on for Excel help and fun projects.

What Do You Think?

If not, do you think it would be useful for you?  Are you doing any of the tasks I mentioned manually right now?

I will be creating more how-to articles and videos on Power Query in the future, so I’m interested to know what you want to learn.

Thank you! 🙂