Before you start
- Open your list in another browser tab. It can be in Microsoft Lists or on a SharePoint site. You'll switch between that tab and this page.
- Make sure you're allowed to change the list. If you made the list yourself, you are. If you can't find Format this column in step 5, ask the person who owns the list.
- Give yourself about 5 minutes.
Good to know: this only changes how a column looks. The information in your list stays exactly the same, and you can remove the new look at any time (step 6 shows how). Once you save it, everyone who opens the list sees the new look.
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Step 1 of 6
Pick a design
Click the one you like. Not sure? Start with Colored status labels. It's the most popular, and the easiest to set up.
Next: tell us about your column ↓Every design, grouped by what it does. Each one says which kind of column it needs.
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Step 2 of 6
Tell us about your column
Fill in the boxes below. The preview shows roughly how your column will look, and it changes as you type.
Preview
Roughly how it will look in your list
This is a close copy, not the real thing, so your list may look slightly different.
Next: set up your list ↓How do I find my column's exact name?
Your list keeps a hidden, exact version of every column's name, and the code needs that version. It's usually the name you see at the top of the column. It can be different if the name has spaces (
Due Dateis stored asDue_x0020_Date) or if someone renamed the column after making it. Here's the quickest way to check:- In your list, click the name at the top of your column, then click the first sorting option in the menu (such as A to Z).
- Click the web address at the top of your browser. Press Ctrl+A, then Ctrl+C to copy it. (On a Mac, use Cmd.)
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Your column's exact name is:That address doesn't include a column name. Sort the column first (A above), then copy the whole address again.
Most likely stored as:This is a best guess. If the column was renamed after it was made, the stored name is still the original one, so the sorting method above is more reliable.
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Step 3 of 6
Add the column to your list
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Step 4 of 6
Copy your code
Click the big button. It copies a block of text (called JSON) that tells your list how to show the column. You don't need to read it or change it.
Go back to step 2 and type your column's name in the first box. The code needs it.
Next: paste it into your list ↓Show me the code
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Step 5 of 6
Paste the code into your list
Switch to the browser tab with your list, then follow these steps.
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Step 6 of 6
Check that it worked
Look at your column in the list. It should look like the preview in step 2. If it does, you're done!
Doesn't look right? Find what you're seeing
Nothing changed. The column looks the same as before.
Work through these in order:
- Are you in grid view? If the toolbar above your list says Exit grid view, click it. The new look doesn't show while you're editing in a grid.
- Does the name match? The name in the first box in step 2 must match your column's exact stored name, capital letters included. Use How do I find my column's exact name? in step 2 to check, then copy and paste the code again.
- Did you click Save? Preview only shows the look while the panel is open. Open the panel again (step 5, A to D) and check your code is still in the box.
- Refresh the page with your list on it.
Everything is grey, or the colors are on the wrong items.
The options in step 2 have to be spelled exactly like the options in your column: same letters, same capitals, same spaces.
In progressandIn Progresscount as different.Fix the options in step 2 so they match, then copy the code (step 4) and paste it again (step 5). Pasting again replaces the old code.
The Save button is greyed out, or I see a red error.
The code was probably changed by accident, or only part of it was pasted. In the box, press Ctrl+A and Delete to empty it. Then click Copy my code in step 4 again and paste it into the empty box.
Always copy with the button on this page. Copying code from an email or a document can change the quote marks, which breaks it.
I can't find "Column settings" or "Format this column".
- Make sure you click the name at the very top of the column, not a value inside the list.
- If the menu has no Column settings, you probably don't have permission to change this list. Ask the person who owns it.
- A few special columns can't be changed at all, such as the file Name column in a document library.
It worked, but I want to change the colors or words.
Go back to step 2 and make your changes. Then copy the code again (step 4) and paste it into the same box (step 5), replacing what's there. Click Save.
How to undo it
- In your list, click the name at the top of the column, then click Column settings, then Format this column.
- If you don't see the box with the code in it, click Advanced mode at the bottom of the panel.
- Click inside the box, press Ctrl+A, then press Delete.
- Click Save. Your column goes back to how it looked before. Nothing in your list is lost.
Want to do another column? Go back to step 1.
