DATE column sorts as text

[THEBookMan]

120000 rows, 2 coulmns (ADDRESS, DATE SENT)
ADDRESS column is formatted as TEXT
DATE SENT column is formatted as DATE (D, MMM,YYYY]
----
Highlight cols "A" & "B",
SORT on "A"(ADDRESS) works great !
SORT on "B"(Date Sent) are sorted as if they were all text, not dates.

Thank you,
⌡im [THE BookMAn]

[Alex1]

Select the date column, click Data, Text to Columns, Separated by, uncheck all separators, click the column, select column type Date (DMY), Ok.

[THEBookMan]

Excellent info, but tried 2X still the same sorting.

Thanks, ⌡im [THE BookMan]

[Hagar Delest]

Can you upload a sample file with a few rows so that we see how it looks like?

[Lupp]

If your "dates" sort as texts, they are texts.
Use ISO 8601 format "YYYY-MM-DD" and sorting will be correct whether all the dates are texts or all the dates are (formatted) numbers.
See attached example.

aoo112951sortingByDates.ods

(84.04 KiB) Downloaded 99 times

[THEBookMan]

DUP? Address sent
- xmyryxn@clamsnet.org 11. Feb. 2025
- xmys@kershawcountylibrary.org 11. Feb. 2025
- xmysxunders970@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xmysb##kcxse@yahoo.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xmysc#ttd#uglxss@yahoo.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xmys#ule@aol.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xmyterlxxk@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xmyurmxn@nosywilma.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xmyvintxgejunque@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xmzc#n@aol.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xn_librxrixn@mymcpl.org 11. Feb. 2025
- xnx.krxhmer@unt.edu 11. Feb. 2025
- xnx@paws2carecoalition.org 11. Feb. 2025
- xnx@thevintageshack.net 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxbelressner@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxcke@unm.edu 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxc#stixlibrxry@dc.gov 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxdutt#n@yahoo.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxelisxxrr@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxh#83@yahoo.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxinmixmi@hotmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxir@mainstreet.org 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxj#nss#n@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxkrin#1711@yahoo.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxli.perry@asu.edu 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxlytics@sfpl.org 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxmxnj#e14@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxmxree@yeoldbooks.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxmxrix@lacaze.org 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxmcl#cks@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxneyx.hxrdmxn@ufl.edu 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxnhxrm#ndxr@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxr#dz@illinois.edu 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxssxfehxvenrescue@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxstxcixsxntiques@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxstxsix.weigle@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxstxsixb##ks@bellsouth.net 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxstxsiyxk@detroithistorical.org 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxstxzixgenevx@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxthxn@pobox.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxtum2000@aol.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xnxuskx@alaskanative.net 11. Feb. 2025
- xnbmcvey@comcast.net 11. Feb. 2025
- xnbr##ks@nbnet.nb.ca 11. Feb. 2025
- xncest#r@fhsnl.ca 11. Feb. 2025
- xncest#r1780@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xncest#rxrchivist@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xncest#rb#nes@yahoo.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xncest#rc#nnect@outlook.com 11. Feb. 2025
- xncest#rc#nnecti#ns@gmail.com 11. Feb. 2025

[Addresses munged to maintain privacy for address owners - robleyd, mod]

[Lupp]

What do you expect now?
If you don't attach your example file, we can't even check what type of data your second column actually contains?
What shall we do with about 60 times the same date?

If the contained email addresses are not just artificial examples, you should SOON edit your post an remove that personal information!

[robleyd]

Use View | Value Highlighting to show what type of information is in your spreadsheet; text cells are formatted in black, formulae in green, and number cells in blue, no matter how their display is formatted.

[THEBookMan]

Sorry for the data reply ....
"SENT column is all numbers
Here is an abbreviated ODS:

☺BM ABBR 202507240912.ods

(110.38 KiB) Downloaded 86 times

 

Edit: Bookman, it is disrespectful to publicly post 6000 personal email addresses. I have replaced them with random data. I made no changes to column C, which contains your text dates. Please never post confidential personal information in the forum. This is your second indiscretion in this topic. I am confident that the solution provided yesterday by Alex1 will work if you perform the steps correctly. -- MrProgrammer, forum moderator, 2025-07-24 14:35 UTC

[RoryOF]

Sorry for the data reply ....
"SENT column is all numbers
Here is an abbreviated ODS:

Value highlighting shows all is text, apart from A2.

[Lupp]

Use View | Value Highlighting to show what type of information is in your spreadsheet; text cells are formatted in black, formulae in green, and number cells in blue, no matter how their display is formatted.

Do NOT use explicit horizontal alignment may be an even better advice. We can get along with an exception for column titles (aligning them right if the contents are numbers, and centered if the contents are mixed).

[MrProgrammer]

Bookman, a review of your other topics found three (91238, 101898, 102403) which also contained many personal email addesses of other people. This behavior is disrespectful. Real email addresses in a public forum invite spammers to capture them and send the owners SPAM, or invite scammers use them to defraud the email owners, possibly resulting in monetary losses. I have replaced the email addresses in those topics with fake ones, as two moderators did to your posts in this topic. If you post again in this topic, or another topic, and include email addresses which are not obviously fake, the moderation team will have a discussion about banning you.

-- MrProgrammer, forum moderator