Filter Gallery by Dropdown List in Canvas Apps

Introduction

Filtering data is one of the most common requirements in Power Apps Canvas Apps. Dropdown controls provide an easy way for users to filter gallery records dynamically based on selected values.

In this article, you'll learn how to filter a gallery using a dropdown control, improve user experience, and create responsive applications with Power Apps.

Why Use Dropdown Filters in Canvas Apps?

Dropdown filters help users:

Quickly find relevant records.
Improve application usability.
Reduce manual searching.
Display only required information.
Enhance performance by limiting displayed records.

Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have:

Power Apps Canvas App.
Data source (Dataverse, SharePoint, SQL, Excel, etc.).
Gallery control.
Dropdown control.

Sample Scenario

Suppose you have an Employee table with the following columns:

Employee Name	Department
John Smith	HR
David Miller	IT
Sarah Wilson	Finance
Michael Brown	IT

Requirement:

Filter employees based on the selected department.

Step 1: Add a Dropdown Control

Insert a Dropdown control.

Navigate to:

Insert → Input → Dropdown

Rename the control:

drpDepartment

Step 2: Populate Dropdown Values

Set the Items property:


Distinct(Employees, Department)

This displays unique department values.

Step 3: Add a Gallery Control

Insert a Vertical Gallery.

Navigate to:

Insert → Gallery → Vertical

Connect the gallery to your data source.

Example:

Employees

Step 4: Apply Filter to Gallery

Set the Gallery Items property:


Filter(
    Employees,
    Department = drpDepartment.Selected.Value
)

Result

When a department is selected, only matching records appear in the gallery.

Allow "All Records" Option

Sometimes users need to view all records.

Set Dropdown Items:


["All"] & Distinct(Employees, Department)

Update Gallery Items:


If(
    drpDepartment.Selected.Value = "All",
    Employees,
    Filter(
        Employees,
        Department = drpDepartment.Selected.Value
    )
)

Result

All → Shows all employees.
HR → Shows HR employees.
IT → Shows IT employees.
Finance → Shows Finance employees.

Filtering SharePoint List Data

Example SharePoint List:

Title	Status
Request 1	Open
Request 2	Closed
Request 3	Open

Dropdown Items:


Distinct(Requests, Status)

Gallery Items:


Filter(
    Requests,
    Status = drpStatus.Selected.Value
)

Filtering Dataverse Records

Example Dataverse Table:

Accounts

Dropdown Items:


Distinct(Accounts, Industry)

Gallery Items:


Filter(
    Accounts,
    Industry = drpIndustry.Selected.Value
)

Multi-Condition Filtering

Example: Filter by Department and Location.


Filter(
    Employees,
    Department = drpDepartment.Selected.Value &&
    Location = drpLocation.Selected.Value
)

Result

Only records matching both filters are displayed.

Search and Dropdown Combination

Combine Search and Dropdown.


Filter(
    Employees,
    Department = drpDepartment.Selected.Value &&
    StartsWith(
        EmployeeName,
        txtSearch.Text
    )
)

Result

Users can search and filter simultaneously.

Real-Time Business Scenario

Requirement

A company wants users to filter customer records by industry.

Solution

Create Industry Dropdown.
Populate unique industries.
Apply Filter function to Gallery.

Formula


Filter(
    Accounts,
    Industry = drpIndustry.Selected.Value
)

Result

Users instantly view customers belonging to the selected industry.

Common Errors

No Records Displayed

Cause:

Incorrect column reference.

Solution:

Verify field names and dropdown values.

Invalid Property Error

Cause:

Using incorrect selected property.

Incorrect:


drpDepartment.SelectedText.Value

Correct:


drpDepartment.Selected.Value

Delegation Warning

Cause:

Large data source.

Solution:

Use delegable functions whenever possible.

Example:


Filter()