How to Dynamically Exclude Last Empty Rows and Columns in Google Sheets

GiGiKing·March 27, 2024·0 comments

Are you tired of dealing with formula errors and performance issues caused by open ranges in your Google Sheets? Well, worry no more! In this article, I’ll reveal three dynamic formulas that will help you exclude those pesky last empty rows and columns effortlessly.

Why Exclude Blank Rows and Columns?

Before we dive into the solutions, let’s understand why you would want to dynamically exclude blank rows and columns from the end of a range. Imagine you have a data range that expands both horizontally and vertically. Referring to an infinite range like A2:Z or A2:1000 in your formulas can cause issues, especially with functions like FLATTEN and MMULT. These open ranges can impact your sheet’s performance and result in formula errors.

For instance, when you use the FLATTEN function on an open range, it may insert several rows in your sheet, disrupting the data structure. To tackle this, we need a solution that allows us to include future entries in our formulas while excluding the last empty rows and columns.

Dynamic ARRAY_CONSTRAIN in Google Sheets

The first formula option we’ll explore is the powerful ARRAY_CONSTRAIN function. It is specifically designed to resize data ranges in Google Sheets by constraining the number of rows, columns, or both from the end of an array/range.

Here’s a sample formula to get you started:

=ARRAY_CONSTRAIN(Sample!A2:I8,7,9)

While this formula isn’t dynamic as we manually specified the number of rows and columns, we can make it dynamic using expressions.

Here are the steps:

  1. Find the row number of the last non-empty cell in the first column:

    =ArrayFormula(MATCH(2,1/(Sample!A2:A<>""),1))

  2. Find the last non-empty column in the second row (which contains field labels):

    =ArrayFormula(MATCH(2,1/(Sample!A2:2<>"")))

Now, we can combine these expressions to create our dynamic ARRAY_CONSTRAIN formula:

=ArrayFormula(ARRAY_CONSTRAIN(Sample!A2:Z,MATCH(2,1/(Sample!A2:A<>""),1),MATCH(2,1/(Sample!A2:2<>""))))

By excluding the last empty rows and columns, you can safely feed this formula (or any other formula) with the exact range A2:I8, ensuring future entries are included without compromising your data structure.

Dynamically Exclude Last Empty Rows and Columns Using INDIRECT

If you’re looking for a simpler approach, the INDIRECT function is your go-to solution. It allows you to create a range reference dynamically based on cell values.

The generic formula looks like this:

indirect(first_cell_in_range&last_non_empty_column_letter&last_non_empty_row_number)

Here’s an example formula:

=indirect(ArrayFormula("Sample!A2:"&REGEXEXTRACT(address(1,match(2,1/(Sample!2:2<>"")),4),"[^d]+")&match(2,1/(Sample!A:A<>""))))

To exclude the header row, modify the formula as follows:

  1. Replace Sample!A2: with Sample!A3:
  2. Replace ArrayFormula(MATCH(2,1/(Sample!A2:A<>""),1)) with ArrayFormula(MATCH(2,1/(Sample!A3:A<>""),1))

To exclude the first column, apply the following changes:

  1. Replace Sample!A3 with Sample!B3
  2. Replace ArrayFormula(match(2,1/(Sample!A2:2<>""))) with ArrayFormula(match(2,1/(Sample!B2:2<>"")))

The OFFSET Way to Resize an Open Range Dynamically

The third method we’ll explore is using the OFFSET function. It offers another dynamic approach to resizing open ranges in Google Sheets.

Here’s the syntax:

OFFSET(cell_reference, offset_rows, offset_columns, [height], [width])

For example:

=offset(Sample!A2,0,0,ArrayFormula(MATCH(2,1/(Sample!A2:A<>""),1)),ArrayFormula(match(2,1/(Sample!A2:2<>""))))

To exclude the header row, follow the dynamic ARRAY_CONSTRAIN method outlined earlier.

To exclude the first column:

  1. Replace Sample!A3 with Sample!B3
  2. Replace ArrayFormula(match(2,1/(Sample!A2:2<>""))) with ArrayFormula(match(2,1/(Sample!B2:2<>"")))

And there you have it! By utilizing these three dynamic formulas, you can easily exclude the last empty rows and columns while ensuring future entries are seamlessly integrated into your Google Sheets.

Remember, simplicity is key when it comes to optimizing your workflows. Choose the formula that works best for you, and say goodbye to formula errors and performance issues caused by open ranges.

For more Google Sheets tips, tricks, and secrets, be sure to visit Crawlan.com. Happy sheeting!

GiGiKing

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