Table Anatomy
Parts of a Table
A More Complex Table
Header
- Use to set your reader up for success
- Explain what’s in the table at a high level (Title/Caption)
- Give context (mention groups)
Stub Head / Stub
- 1 dimension of categories
- Think about order (especially about hierarchical categories)
- Use indentation for hierarchies
Column Labels / Spanners
- Use spanners to group your column categories
- Use to show hierarchies
- Put categories that need to be compared next to each other
Table Body
- Use proper formatting and alignment
- Put summary lines at the margins or by group
Try identifying the different elements in the table below:
