Skip to main content
cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

July 7 - July 17 | Round 2 of the Power BI Dataviz World Championships. Don't miss your chance! Learn more

Reply
Ad_456
Frequent Visitor

Use a specific cell (text)

How do I reference a specific cell value in query editor - add custom column. 
I want to use the value of column 1 first row in a new column. How can I do that

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION
Vijay_A_Verma
Most Valuable Professional
Most Valuable Professional

In PQ, every statement refers to previous statement if it has to refer to a table. In general, it is always the immediate previous statement.

Hence see the below code

Source = abcde,

#"Added Custom" = gjlkd,

Result = #"Added Custom"{0}[Column1]

// See how Result refers to previous step

View solution in original post

4 REPLIES 4
Vijay_A_Verma
Most Valuable Professional
Most Valuable Professional

If it is in the same row, you just need to reference that column like

=[Column1]

If you want to reference some other row, then various methods are there. 

But since you want to refer to only Column1 in first row, you can do like this

=Table.First(#"Your previous step")[Column1]

OR

#"Your previous step"[Column1]{0}

OR

#"Your previous step"{0}[Column1]

I have a text in a column named Column1 at row 4, which I need to apply against each row of data as a new column.

I have tried as follows: = Table.AddColumn(#"PreviousStep", "NewColumn", each [Column1]{3}) 

I don't get any syntax error and the new column gets created, but every line in this new column just shows "Error"

Can you help solve this issue.

Sorry, I don't get it! What do you mean by "your previous step"? 

 

 

Vijay_A_Verma
Most Valuable Professional
Most Valuable Professional

In PQ, every statement refers to previous statement if it has to refer to a table. In general, it is always the immediate previous statement.

Hence see the below code

Source = abcde,

#"Added Custom" = gjlkd,

Result = #"Added Custom"{0}[Column1]

// See how Result refers to previous step

Helpful resources

Announcements
FabCon and SQLCon Barcelona 2026

FabCon & SQLCon – Barcelona 2026

Join us in Barcelona for FabCon and SQLCon, the Fabric, Power BI, SQL, and AI community event. Save €200 with code FABCMTY200.

60 days of Data Days Carousel

Data Days 2026

Join Data Days 2026: 60 days of free live/on-demand sessions, challenges, study groups, and certification opportunities.

Power BI DataViz World Championships carousel

Power BI DataViz World Championships - June 2026

A new Power BI DataViz World Championship is coming this June! Don't miss out on submitting your entry.

Top Solution Authors