Tables & Structured Data

Creating your first table

From the left sidebar (File Explorer), create a new Table. You can start from a template — Track Projects, Manage Inventory, or Log Expenses — each preloaded with columns and sample data so you can see the structure right away. Or choose Create Blank to start with a single "Name" column and build from scratch.

A Table in Formula is like a spreadsheet sheet, but with typed columns — each column has a fixed data type that validates input. Tables live inside a file (.fml), and one file can contain multiple tables.

Rows are actually Data objects — they exist independently and can appear in multiple tables. This is what makes Formula a relational tool, not just a flat list.

Column types

Formula supports 9 column types. Each column enforces its data type — you can't accidentally put text in a number column.

• → Auto — Auto-detected per cell. The app figures out if it's a number, date, time, or text.
• → Text — Free-form text strings for names, descriptions, and notes.
• → Number — Integers and decimals. Can be used in formula calculations.
• → Currency — Monetary amounts with currency symbol and decimal formatting.
• → Date — Calendar dates with date picker, stored in ISO format.
• → Time — Time-of-day values in HH:mm or HH:mm:ss format.
• → Checkbox — True/false toggle. Click or press Space to toggle.
• → Select — Choice from a predefined list, displayed as colored tags.
• → Reference — Link to another Data object. This is how relations work.

Editing data

Click a cell to select it, press Enter to start editing. The edit mode adapts to the column type: text input, checkbox toggle, select dropdown, or reference picker. Formula cells are read-only — they show computed values.

Select multiple cells by clicking and dragging, use Shift+Click to extend, or click a column header to select the entire column. Copy and paste works with Excel and Google Sheets — Formula uses tab-separated format automatically.

The fill handle lets you drag to auto-fill adjacent cells. It detects patterns: arithmetic sequences (1, 2, 3 → 4, 5, 6), dates, text with suffixes, and cyclic patterns. Undo supports up to 200 steps per table.

Sorting & filtering

Click any column header to sort. The sort is type-aware: numbers sort numerically, dates chronologically, text alphabetically. Sort state is saved with the file and is fully undoable.

Each column has a filter icon. Click it to set a condition — 9 operators are available: Contains, Equals, Not Equals, Is Empty, Is Not Empty, Greater Than, Less Than, and more. Multiple filters combine with AND logic.

When filters are active, footer formulas (like SUM and AVERAGE) automatically recalculate to reflect only the visible rows.

Growing your dataset

Add rows with the + button at the bottom, or insert between existing rows with the inline + button. Columns are added from the header bar. All structural operations — duplicate, remove, rename, reorder — are undoable.

Beyond the table grid, Formula offers additional views: Badge View (card-style browsing), Summary View (filtered aggregations like saved reports), Chart View (bar, line, pie, scatter), and History View (version snapshots).

Import CSV and multi-sheet Excel files directly. Formula auto-detects headers and column types. Export to CSV for sharing.