How to Automatically Refresh a Table Using VBA (Excel)

Written by Kasper Langmann

Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is a powerful tool that allows you to automate tasks in Excel. One such task is refreshing a table, which can be a time-consuming process if done manually. This article will guide you through the process of setting up a VBA script to automatically refresh a table in Excel.

Understanding VBA

Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is a programming language developed by Microsoft that is used for automating tasks in Microsoft Office applications. It is a subset of the Visual Basic programming language, with additional libraries specifically designed for Office applications.

Excel VBA is particularly useful for automating repetitive tasks, such as refreshing a table. This can save you a significant amount of time, especially if you are working with large datasets.

While VBA can be a bit intimidating for beginners, it is a powerful tool that can greatly enhance your productivity in Excel. With a bit of practice, you can learn to write your own VBA scripts to automate a wide variety of tasks.

Setting Up Your Excel Workbook

Before you can write a VBA script to refresh a table, you need to set up your Excel workbook. This involves creating a table and inputting some data. For the purposes of this guide, we’ll assume that you already have a table set up in your workbook.

Once your table is set up, you’ll need to enable the Developer tab in Excel. This tab contains the tools you’ll need to write and run VBA scripts. To enable the Developer tab, right-click on the ribbon and select ‘Customize the Ribbon’. Then, in the right-hand column, check the box next to ‘Developer’.

With the Developer tab enabled, you’re ready to start writing your VBA script.

Writing Your VBA Script

Writing a VBA script to refresh a table involves a few steps. First, you’ll need to open the VBA editor. To do this, click on the Developer tab and then click on ‘Visual Basic’. This will open the VBA editor in a new window.

Next, you’ll need to insert a new module. A module is a container for your VBA code. To insert a new module, click on ‘Insert’ in the menu bar and then select ‘Module’.

With your new module open, you’re ready to start writing your VBA script. The code for refreshing a table is relatively simple. Here’s an example:

Sub RefreshTable()
    ThisWorkbook.RefreshAll
End Sub

This code creates a new subroutine called ‘RefreshTable’. The ‘ThisWorkbook.RefreshAll’ line tells Excel to refresh all tables in the workbook. If you want to refresh a specific table, you can replace ‘ThisWorkbook.RefreshAll’ with ‘Worksheets(“Sheet1”).ListObjects(“Table1”).Refresh’, replacing ‘Sheet1’ and ‘Table1’ with the name of your worksheet and table.

Running Your VBA Script

Once you’ve written your VBA script, you can run it by pressing F5 while in the VBA editor. Alternatively, you can run it from Excel by clicking on the Developer tab, then ‘Macros’, selecting your macro from the list, and clicking ‘Run’.

When you run your script, Excel will refresh your table. If you’ve set up your script correctly, this should happen automatically without any input from you.

Automating Your VBA Script

While running your VBA script manually is useful, the real power of VBA comes from automation. You can set up your script to run automatically whenever a specific event occurs. For example, you could set up your script to run whenever the workbook is opened, or whenever a specific cell is updated.

To set up your script to run automatically, you’ll need to use an event handler. An event handler is a special type of subroutine that runs whenever a specific event occurs. Here’s an example of how to set up an event handler to run your ‘RefreshTable’ subroutine whenever the workbook is opened:

Private Sub Workbook_Open()
    RefreshTable
End Sub

This code creates a new event handler that runs whenever the workbook is opened. The ‘RefreshTable’ line calls your ‘RefreshTable’ subroutine, causing the table to be refreshed.

Conclusion

VBA is a powerful tool that can save you a significant amount of time in Excel. By automating the process of refreshing a table, you can ensure that your data is always up-to-date without having to manually refresh the table yourself.

While VBA can be a bit intimidating for beginners, with a bit of practice, you can learn to write your own VBA scripts to automate a wide variety of tasks. So why not give it a try? You might be surprised at how much time you can save.