Creating a List

Lists can be created from scratch or from an Excel spreadsheet and accessed from Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Sharepoint, or the Microsoft Lists app on the Office 365 website. The functionality is the same regardless of where you create the list. Below are instructions for creating a list in each application.

  1. Open the MS Lists app.
  2. Click New List
    New List is the top centered button
  3. Choose from the options to create a list.
    Options include new and from excel
  4. Give your list a name, description, color, and icon
    List name is the first field
  5. Give your list a name and a description. In the MS Lists app, you will also choose a color and icon.
  6. Under Save to, either:
    • Leave the default My lists to save the list to your OneDrive account
    • Use the dropdown to choose an existing Sharepoint site to save the list in.
  7. Click Create.
  1. Open Microsoft Teams
  2. Navigate to the Team and Channel that you’d like the list in.

    We use General channel in our example
    • Note: This list will be connected to and accessed only from this channel and Sharepoint, not the other channels in this Team.
  3. At the top of the channel, click the + button
    The plus button is at the right end of the channel options
  4. Search for Lists, then click Lists
    Lists is the only search result
  5. Click Save
    Save is the second option
  6. Click Create a List
    Create a list is the first option
  7. Choose from the options to create a list.

    Options include new and from excel
  1. Log in to Sharepoint and navigate to your site.
  2. In the menu on the main site page, click +New to expand the dropdown.
    New is the first option in the horizontal menu
  3. Click List.
    List is the first option in the new dropdown
  4. Choose from the options to create a list.

    Options include new and from excel

This can be done in any app, whether you are using the MS Lists app online, MS Teams, or MS Sharepoint.

First: Prepare your Excel Spreadsheet

  1. Open your spreadsheet in Excel.
    This is a normal Excel spreadsheet
  2. Select all of your data. Don’t select empty rows or columns – only cells with data in them.

    select the headers and data
    • On a Mac, hold shift, then hold the command key, then press the down arrow to select all of the vertical data; then (still holding down the shift and command keys), press the right arrow key.
    • On Windows, hold shift, then hold the control key, then press the down arrow to select all of the vertical data; then (still holding down the shift and control keys), press the right arrow key.
  3. In the Home ribbon, choose Format as Table.
    Format as table is near the end of the ribbon
  4. Select any table style.
    The style won't import into Lists
  5. When asked where the data for your table is, you should be given the first and last row and column values holding data. Click OK.
    The data will look like a formula
  6. Your data will be reformatted as a table.
    The spreadsheet data and only the data is a table
  7. For any columns that hold only dates, numbers, currency, or percentages, make sure the column is set to that data type.
    • Let’s walk through an example of a column of dates:
      An excel spreadsheet with start date as the column title and dates as the entries
    • Highlight that column by clicking the column letter.
      The letter is the column header
    • In the Home ribbon, click General.
      General is near the end of the ribbon
    • In the dropdown that appears, select the appropriate data type. For our example, we will choose Short Date.
      Short date is the fifth option
    • The column type updates.
      The type is at the top of the column
  8. Repeat this for all columns that are not simply plain text.

Second, Import the Excel spreadsheet to Microsoft Lists

  1. Follow the steps in the appropriate section above for Sharepoint, MS Teams, or the MS Lists app to navigate to the List Creation screen.
  2. Under Create a list, choose From Excel.
    From Excel is the third option
  3. Choose Upload File.
    Upload file is the only option
  4. Lists will show your spreadsheet as it will be imported. Before you click Next, check the column data type above each column. For example, Start Date here is listed as a number, not a date.
    A field might be a number like 45242 instead of a date
  5. Above any column with the wrong data type listed above that column, click the dropdown and choose the correct data type.
    Choices vary depending on the column contents but can be number, currency, text, and more
  6. Click Next
  7. Give your list a name and a description. In the MS Lists app, you will also choose a color and icon.
    List name is the first field
  8. Click Create.