In Google Sheets, reversing an array means you want to reorder the elements in the array so that the last element becomes the first, the second-to-last becomes the second, and so on. This operation can be useful for data analysis where you might need to flip the order of rows or columns to present data in a more understandable or relevant manner.
Google Sheets does not have a built-in function named REVERSE or similar that directly reverses an array, unlike some programming languages. However, you can achieve the same effect using a combination of functions or scripts.
Follow the steps below to reverse an array in Google Sheets using the ‘SORT’ function.
Ensure that your data such as a list of names from Alice to Edward, is in column A, from A1 to A5.
In column B, next to your names, create a helper column with numbers in reverse order, from 1 in B2 to 5 in B6.
In a new column, column C, use the SORT function to reverse your data. Enter the formula =SORT(A2:A6, B2:B6, FALSE) in cell C2. This will sort your names based on the numbers in the helper column in descending order.
Your names should now appear in reverse order in column C, starting with Edward at the top and ending with Alice at the bottom.
We hope that you now have a better understanding of how to set up Google Sheets reverse array. If you enjoyed this article, you might also like our article on how to find coefficients of variation in Google Sheets or our article on how to insert Greek letters in Google Sheets.
