Sorting by Date Keeps Randomly Resorting

I have a Smartsheet that about 8 people all work from, we all sort by "start date" Ascending (1/1/26, 2/1/26, 3/1/26 etc.). However we all have to constantly resort as the rows will get randomly sorted sometimes. Why does this occur? How can we set it up to keep the sort as Ascending from the "start date" column?

We do add new rows often with new start dates that can be any time in the future. The start date is pulled from another sheet as a formula. The column type is set to "date". We really need to use the Grid view and not a report since we use the Sheet as an "Onboarding Tracker" requiring us to add data often.

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Julia Rumburg Price

@Braden68 Your Best Options

Option 1: Reconsider a Report (Hear Me Out!)I know you said you need Grid view, but I want to gently push back here because Reports actually do allow you to:

Add new rows (they write back to your source sheet)
Edit cell data directly
Maintain a persistent sort that never changes

The main limitations are structural things like adding columns or changing column types — but for daily data entry and tracking? A Report handles that beautifully. This is genuinely the cleanest solve.

Option 2: Team Habit + Saved Filter Create a Saved Filter that includes your preferred sort, and train the team to apply it after adding rows. Not automatic, but it's one click.

Braden68

How do you add a sort to a filter? I can't sort when a filter is on.

Yasar_smartsyncapp

You’re not doing anything wrong — this is just a limitation of Grid view in Smartsheet. This happens because Smartsheet doesn’t lock sorting in sheets. Every user sorts their own view, and anytime rows are updated by formulas, automations, or new rows being added, Smartsheet can reshuffle things and break the sort.

There’s no way to permanently keep a sheet sorted. The best workaround is to:

Use a report if possible (reports keep sorting stable), or

Add a helper column that calculates a sort order and re-sort as needed, or

Use automation or a third-party tool to reapply the sort automatically

Paul Newcome

@Julia Rumburg Price How exactly are you adding new rows in a report, and how do you include a sort inside of a filter?

Loann McGee

How are you adding rows within a report?

We're on the Enterprise level and that is not an option. Reports pull their data from the source sheet(s).

Darren Mullen

@Braden68 you can also use SSFeatures to auto sort

https://smartworkflowguru.com/smartsheet-auto-sort-rows/

Loann McGee

For the Sheet sorting issue, this has been an enhancement request for many, many years. We cannot - will not - pay another entity for a solution when the issue is a backend programming problem of the platform that should have been solved long ago.

Julia Rumburg Price

Y'all are absolutely right — I was moving way too fast yesterday morning, doing some massive testing, and gave some wrong details. My apologies!!!!

To clarify: You cannot add rows in a report, and you cannot save a sort inside a filter. I misspoke on both counts.

The honest answer is Smartsheet doesn't have a native persistent sort for sheets — it's been requested for years. Your options are:

SSFeatures Auto-Sort (as Darren mentioned) — this is what I personally use
Report for viewing with persistent sort, but you'd still need to add rows in the source sheet
Team habit of re-sorting after adding rows

@Loann McGee — I completely understand not wanting to pay for something the platform should handle natively. It's a fair point, and I hope Smartsheet addresses it eventually.

Again, my apologies for the confusion!

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