We use cookies to improve our service. Learn more.

Guides / Intermediate Concepts

Computed Columns

Transform basic data in powerful new ways.

Meet the new Glide Apps

Glide Pages are now Glide Apps. Please refer to this article for up-to-date information, as some of this documentation is outdated.

The Data Editor is where you edit the data in your Glide Table or external Data Source. It's also a place where you can add powerful Computed Columns that enhance your project's data.

In this guide, we'll give you an overview of the six most commonly used types and point you to more in-depth documentation on each of them.

  1. Relation
  2. Lookup
  3. Template
  4. Rollup
  5. Math
  6. If Then Else

Relation Column

Configuring the Relation column in the Data Editor
Configuring the Relation column in the Data Editor

One of the most important Computed Columns in Glide is the Relation Column.

After making a few Lists and Screens in Glide, most people realize that they need to create relationships between things. For example:

  • Allow tasks to belong in projects
  • Show employees inside of departments
  • Put inventory items into categories
  • Or make rooms belong inside of buildings

Databases like Airtable allow us to create relationships like this, but normal spreadsheets don't.

Wherever your data is stored, you can use the Relation Column to create relationships and then use those relationships in lots of different ways.

Lookup Column

Configuring the Lookup column in the Data Editor

Configuring the Lookup column in the Data Editor

The Lookup Column uses a Relation to look through and bring back the values from a single column. For example:

  • Retrieve the phone number of a team member's manager
  • Show the project name that the current task belongs to
  • Lookup the category ID for the current item
  • Get the address of the customer assigned to this order

Template Column

Configuring the Template column in the Data Editor
Configuring the Template column in the Data Editor

The Template Column enables you to display dynamic text from data found in other columns. For example, you could write ‘Welcome NAME, today is DAY' and replace NAME with the User's name and DAY with the current day.

Rollup Column

Configuring the Rollup column in the Data Editor
Configuring the Rollup column in the Data Editor

The Rollup Column helps you to perform a calculation on an entire column or even a Relation. The most basic computation for the Rollup is Count, but depending on what data you're working with, you can also do things like:

  • Count Unique
  • Sum
  • Average
  • Range
  • Max/Min
  • Earliest
  • Lates
  • Count True
  • All True
  • And much more

Math Column

Configuring the Math column in the Data Editor
Configuring the Math column in the Data Editor

The Math Column performs instant calculations on the data in your table — from basic arithmetic functions to more complex ones. You can then bind the formulas in your column to different Components in your app and see the output instantly.

The Math Column using in a salary calculator app.
The Math Column using in a salary calculator app.

If → Then → Else Column

Configuring the If → Then → Else column in the Data Editor
Configuring the If → Then → Else column in the Data Editor

The If → Then → Else Column produces new values based on a set of conditions. For example:

  • If the user's age is greater than 18, output the value Of Age
  • If the Task Relation column is empty, output the value No Tasks
  • If the Due Date is before today, output the value Overdue
  • If the user's score is greater than 60%, output the value Pass
Updated 3 days ago
Was this helpful?