How to Refresh a Pivot Table in VBA: Master it in 3 Minutes (Excel)

Written by Kasper Langmann

The pivot table is a powerful tool in Excel that allows you to analyze large amounts of data. However, as your data changes, you may find yourself needing to refresh your pivot table to reflect these changes. The Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) language provides a solution for this, allowing you to automate the process of refreshing your pivot table. In this guide, we will walk you through the steps of how to refresh a pivot table in VBA.

Understanding Pivot Tables and VBA

Before we dive into the process of refreshing a pivot table in VBA, it’s important to understand what pivot tables and VBA are. Pivot tables are data summarization tools used in spreadsheet programs like Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets. They can automatically sort, count, total, or average the data stored in one table or spreadsheet, displaying the results in a second table showing the summarized data.

VBA, on the other hand, stands for Visual Basic for Applications. It is a programming language developed by Microsoft that is used to automate tasks in Microsoft applications. In Excel, VBA can be used to automate complex tasks and enhance the functionality of your spreadsheets.

Why Refresh a Pivot Table?

Refreshing a pivot table is necessary when the data in the source table changes. If you add, change, or delete data in the source table, the pivot table does not automatically update to reflect these changes. Instead, you must refresh the pivot table to update it.

While you can manually refresh a pivot table by right-clicking on the pivot table and selecting “Refresh”, this can become tedious if you have multiple pivot tables or if your data changes frequently. This is where VBA comes in. By using VBA, you can automate the process of refreshing your pivot table, saving you time and effort.

How to Refresh a Pivot Table in VBA

Now that we understand what pivot tables and VBA are and why you might need to refresh a pivot table, let’s dive into the process of how to do it.

Step 1: Open the VBA Editor

The first step in refreshing a pivot table in VBA is to open the VBA editor. You can do this by pressing Alt + F11 on your keyboard. This will open the VBA editor in a new window.

In the VBA editor, you can write and edit VBA code, and run it to automate tasks in Excel. For our purposes, we will be writing a simple VBA script to refresh a pivot table.

Step 2: Insert a New Module

Next, you will need to insert a new module in the VBA editor. A module is a container for VBA code. You can think of it as a blank canvas on which you can write your VBA script.

To insert a new module, go to the “Insert” menu in the VBA editor and select “Module”. This will insert a new module in the Project Explorer on the left side of the VBA editor.

Step 3: Write the VBA Code

Now that you have a new module, you can write your VBA code. The code to refresh a pivot table in VBA is quite simple. Here is an example:

Sub RefreshPivotTable()
    Sheets("Sheet1").PivotTables("PivotTable1").PivotCache.Refresh
End Sub

In this code, “Sheet1” is the name of the sheet where your pivot table is located, and “PivotTable1” is the name of your pivot table. You will need to replace these with the actual names of your sheet and pivot table.

The “PivotCache.Refresh” method is what actually refreshes the pivot table. When this line of code is run, it will refresh the pivot table, updating it to reflect any changes in the source data.

Step 4: Run the VBA Code

Once you have written your VBA code, you can run it to refresh your pivot table. To run the code, simply press F5 on your keyboard while in the VBA editor. You can also go to the “Run” menu and select “Run Sub/UserForm”.

After running the code, your pivot table should be refreshed and updated to reflect any changes in the source data.

Conclusion

Refreshing a pivot table in VBA is a simple process that can save you a lot of time and effort. By automating this task, you can ensure that your pivot tables are always up-to-date, even when your data changes frequently.

While this guide has provided a basic introduction to refreshing a pivot table in VBA, there is much more you can do with VBA in Excel. With a bit of practice and experimentation, you can use VBA to automate a wide range of tasks and enhance the functionality of your spreadsheets.