Reports

Smartsheet Report Columns Copy and Paste

Smartsheet reports require you to configure columns individually for each report — selecting which columns to show, in what order, and at what width. When building multiple reports with the same column layout, there is no native way to duplicate that configuration, so teams repeat the same manual setup from scratch every time.

Without Grid Tools

The daily workaround

Manual column selection every time
Each new report requires opening the column settings panel and re-adding every column individually from the available list.
Column order lost on rebuild
Getting columns into the correct left-to-right sequence requires dragging each one into position by hand.
Width adjustments repeated report by report
Column widths set in one report do not carry over, so resizing must be done again in every new report.
Template reports go stale
When a stakeholder wants a column added to the standard layout, the change must be applied to each report independently.
Screenshot: Report column settings panel with empty column list to populate
Starting from scratch in a new report's column settings
Screenshot: Dragging columns one by one into the desired order
Manually ordering columns by dragging
Screenshot: Two reports with different column layouts after separate manual setup
Inconsistent column layouts across related reports

With Grid Tools

How Grid Tools handles it

Copy column layout in one action
Grid Tools adds a copy control to the report column settings so you can capture the full column configuration at once.
Paste into another report instantly
Open any other report and paste — columns, their order, and their widths transfer without manual re-entry.
Propagate layout changes quickly
Update column settings in one report, then paste the new configuration into related reports to keep layouts consistent.
Works across source-sheet combinations
Column copy-paste works regardless of which source sheets a report draws from, as long as matching column names exist.
Screenshot: Grid Tools copy button in the report column settings panel
Copy button in the report column settings panel
Screenshot: Copied column layout with order and widths captured
Column layout captured and ready to paste
Screenshot: Second report with columns pasted in matching order and widths
Columns pasted into a second report

Frequently asked questions

Does Smartsheet have a way to duplicate report column settings?

No. Smartsheet does not support copying column configurations between reports natively. Grid Tools adds copy-paste directly inside the report column settings panel.

What exactly is copied with the column configuration?

Grid Tools captures the list of included columns, their display order, and their widths so the destination report matches the source layout.

Will columns paste if the destination report has different source sheets?

Columns that share a name with the source configuration will be added and positioned correctly. Columns that do not exist in the destination report's source sheets will be skipped.

Can I use this to maintain a standard column template across a report library?

Yes. Configure one authoritative report with the standard layout, then use copy-paste to apply that layout to all other reports in the library whenever it changes.

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