Spreadsheet.com allows you to change the data type of individual cells in addition to whole columns and ranges.
Specifying the data type of a cell is a good way to format the data in a cell. You can use unique data types like the phone, dates, or attachment data types to add certain types of data to your cells.
You may want to edit a cell to a different data type than the column it is in. For instance, in a column of number cells, you may want to feature a number from another workbook and include a related row lookup to display the number from a cell in another workbook. Cells can have different data types than the columns they are a part of, provided that column does not have strict data validation.
How to Edit a Cell's Data Type
Begin by selecting the cell for which you want to change the data type. Right click on the cell and select "Edit data type..." from the dropdown.
Or, select the Edit data type button from the right hand side of the toolbar. Note that the icon will change depending on the cell's current data type.
Either option will open the Edit data type for [cell] dialog, where you can select the cell's new data type from the "Type" field dropdown.
Spreadsheet.com supports over 25 data types, each with their own configuration options. For more details, take a look at our Introduction to Data Types article and the accompanying articles on each data type.
Once you've specified the cell's new data types and configured it to your needs, click the blue Update button in the bottom right corner of the dialog and the cell will update to reflect the new data type.
Changing a Cell in the Primary Column
Cells in the primary column are restricted to alphanumeric data types. If you change the data type of a cell in the primary column, the data types available in the Edit data type dialog will be restricted to those only. If necessary, you can designate a different column as the primary column.
Undoing Changes
Like most other changes in Spreadsheet.com, you can undo a change in data type. To undo, either select Undo in the toolbar or type Ctrl + Z (CMD + Z for Mac users). Undoing edits to a cell's data type will restore the cell to its previous data type.
Converting Between Data Types
When changing data types, you may convert existing data to the new data type. For more information on how data of one type converts to another, see our article on Converting the Data Type of Existing Data.
In addition to editing the data type of a single cell, you can also change the data type of a range of cells or set the data type for a whole column.