Put a Countries Flag Next to Country in Excel

Putting a Countries Flag Next to the Name – What do you mean?

So you want to know how to put a countries flag next to country in Excel? Is it possible to do this?

Is it possible for you to have a spreadsheet to look like this:

Countries with Flags next to them
Countries with Flags next to them

As you can see there is a list of countries on the left in column A and in column B is the countries flag.

Now you don’t want to be going online and individually copying and pasting that countries flag into each cell in column b. You don’t want to be saving each countries flag and inserting a picture into each cell.

How to put the flag next to the country name in Excel?

As a matter of fact, how do you put a countries flag in the current row for the country the flag refers to?

The first clue you can see is the strange shape beside the country name in column A. Here’s a close up of that shape.

Geography data type card
Card Symbol in Microsoft Excel

Looking closely you can see that I’ve highlighted the above icon in Excel with a green square. This icon, which looks like a card, represents a linked data type. So from now on when you enter a countries name, Excel recognises it as a geography data type.

Which is why you can see the Union Flag to the right of the United Kingdom, the Hinomaru to the right of Japan and so on.

So I bet you’re wondering how do you do this? I reckon you’re fed up of being the worst Excel user in the room. Well don’t fret. Follow these simple steps and you’ll be well on your way to becoming office Excel guru.

Next, enter a list of countries in an Excel spreadsheet .

List of countries
List of Countries Ready to Change to the Excel Geography Data Type

Indeed, by integrating the header ‘Country’, you markedly enhance your data’s structure. Not only does this straightforward action boost clarity, but it also increases accessibility. Consequently, it ensures that your content connects more effectively with both users and search engines, fostering greater engagement and visibility.

Once you have done that highlight all the names of the countries and from the Data menu on the ribbon select geography.

Excel with the Data Tab on the Ribbon along with the Geography data type highlighted.
Data that has just been converted into the Excel Geography Data type

Inserting the Countries Flag

Following the above, it’s time to place the countries flag to the right. In column B.

Lastly you can click on the “Insert Data” button. This you will find at the top-right of the data you’ve just selected.

Arrow pointing to the insert data button in Excel.
How to Place Country Flag to Right of Country – Insert Data Button

After that, scroll down the list that appeared when you clicked on the insert data button and click “Image”.

Green rectangle highlighting the image data type in Excel.
Image to Insert Country Flag in Excel

After that, have a look at all of those wonderful flags.

The completed Excel file with all the image data types showing the countries flag to the right of the country.
Flags by Country Name

Excel Geography Data

As has been noted, if you have done all of the above, you know the secret to placing a countries flag by it’s name in Excel. Hopefully you found this guide helpful. Consequently you now know how to put a countries flag next to ountry in Excel

Now, I need to let you know for this to work, you will need to have Excel 365. Check that the version of Excel you have by clicking on File – Account. Next, view your Excel version.

Product information showing the version of Excel
Ensure you have Excel 365

Additionally, you may have guessed that flags aren’t the only thing that the geography data type is useful for. Explore on your own and you’ll discover you can retrieve all sorts of fascinating data. This data includes population, GDP, largest city this list goes on.

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