How to transpose rows to columns (or columns to rows)
✓ Verified in LibreOffice 25.8.7.3 ✓ Verified in Google Sheets (2026-08-30)Flip data so rows become columns and columns become rows, without retyping.
The formula
| App | Formula | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Excel (desktop) | =TRANSPOSE(A1:A3) | Spills automatically in Excel 365/2021; older Excel needs Ctrl+Shift+Enter. |
| Google Sheets | =TRANSPOSE(A1:A3) | Identical; spills automatically. |
| LibreOffice Calc | =TRANSPOSE(A1:A3) | Identical; modern LibreOffice spills like Excel. |
How it works
TRANSPOSE swaps the orientation of a range: a 3-row column becomes a 3-column row, and an m×n table becomes n×m. It's a live formula, so the flipped copy updates when the source changes. For a one-time flip without a formula, copy the range and use Paste Special → Transpose, which all three apps also support.
Verified, not just documented
We ran =TRANSPOSE(A1:A3) in LibreOffice 25.8.7.3 (headless, with forced recalculation) and it returned 1, 2, 3 — exactly the expected result. We then ran the same formulas in Google Sheets, executed 2026-08-30: a formula-only workbook goes into Google Drive, which converts it to a Sheet and recalculates every formula with Google’s own engine, and comes back out as .xlsx carrying the values Google computed. It returned 1, 2, 3 for the worked example, the same value LibreOffice produced. Both engines’ numbers on this page are executed results. The Excel formula follows Microsoft’s official documented syntax — we do not run desktop Excel.
Functions used
TRANSPOSE — see full Excel, Google Sheets & LibreOffice compatibility for each.