Google Sheets FILTER formula builder

Say which rows you want and get one FILTER formula to paste into an empty cell. Pick the column to test (a letter), how to test it (contains, equals, starts with, one of a list, a number above or below a limit, a date after or before a day, blank or not blank), and add up to two more conditions joined by AND or OR. It is built in your browser and nothing you type here is sent anywhere. Each formula type was run in a real Google Sheet on 2 November 2026 with upper and lower case variants, blank cells, numbers stored as text and dates, including a spreadsheet set to German locale.

How to use it

Put the formula in an empty cell, ideally on a new tab. It fills the cells below and to the right, so those must be empty: if something is in the way, Sheets shows #REF! with "Array result was not expanded". Do not put it inside the cells it reads. The condition column is read on the same rows as "Rows to show", so keep the first and last row the same for both (the builder does this for you). A condition column may sit outside the shown columns: show A2:B and test column D.

What each test does

• Equals (text): =FILTER(A2:D, B2:B="Open"). Sheets compares text without regard to case, so Open, open and OPEN all match. Tick "Match upper and lower case exactly" and the builder uses EXACT instead.
• Contains, starts with, ends with, is one of: REGEXMATCH on the cell as text. The builder escapes characters such as . ( * in your value, so "a.b" finds only a.b. Case is ignored unless you tick the exact-case box. Because the cell is read as text, "contains 1" also finds the number 100.
• Number tests: =FILTER(A2:D, C2:C>100) and the other comparisons. Use a dot for decimals.
• Date tests: the date you type (2026-03-31) becomes DATE(2026, 3, 31), which Sheets reads the same way in every locale. It works on cells that Sheets treats as dates.
• Several conditions: AND puts each test in its own argument. OR adds the tests together, which FILTER accepts as "at least one is true".
• Order: wraps the result in SORT by its first column.

The catches (found by testing in a real Sheet)

• Nothing matches gives #N/A, not an empty result. FILTER fails with "No matches are found in FILTER evaluation". The box above wraps the formula in IFERROR to show a message. That also hides other errors, so build and check the formula without it first.
• A blank cell counts as 0 in a number test. "Number less than 8" returned the empty rows too until the blank test was added, which is why "Leave out rows where the tested cell is blank" is on by default. Untick it only if you want those rows.
• "Does not equal" also returns blank rows unless that same box is ticked.
• Numbers stored as text break a number test. With "10", "3", "25" as text, "greater than 20" returned every row, because Sheets sorts text above numbers. Tick "stored as text" and the builder wraps the cells in VALUE (or DATEVALUE for dates): the test then returned only 25 and 100. Cells that cannot be read as numbers are left out.
• Extra spaces are real. "banana " (with a trailing space) does not equal "banana"; clean the column first or use "contains".
• The result is a live copy. It cannot be edited, and the formatting of the original does not come along.
• Separators. If your sheet's locale writes decimals with a comma (File > Settings), Sheets wants ; between arguments: switch the separator above. We ran the semicolon version in a German-locale Sheet.

When the original table should stay sorted

FILTER makes a separate list. To keep the table itself in order, use the sort formula generator for a sorted copy, the unique values formula maker to drop repeats, or the auto sort script generator for the table itself.

No code: KeepSorted

The add-on sorts the original table in place without code: no second copy, so formatting, checkboxes and notes move with their rows and people keep editing the same table. Select the range, pick the sort columns, Save. Free: one area per tab, up to 2 sort columns, no trial clock. Pro ($5/month or $39/year): up to 5 sort columns, custom orders like High > Medium > Low, ticked checkbox rows to the bottom, stacked tables sorted separately, and sorting after form responses, other editors' changes and an hourly check.

More KeepSorted tools and guides

• Unique values formula maker (UNIQUE, counts, duplicates)
• RANK formula builder (ties, groups)
• Sort formula generator (SORT, SORTN, QUERY order by)
• Auto sort script generator (Apps Script that sorts the original)
• Sort by last name
• StaySorted alternative: an honest comparison

Sources

• FILTER function | REGEXMATCH function | EXACT function | SORT function | IFERROR function