Max number of columns in a list in Sharepoint Online

Question

I'm building new SharePoint site using Office 365 version. I seem to have to create some lists which has a big number of columns, so I'm wondering how many is the maximum number a list can have. At the moment I'm thinking to create 180 columns in one list. I would like to hear some ideas. Does anyone know the answer?

Solution 1

Total Column Byte Limit

Each column added to a list consumes a number of bytes. The total number of bytes consumed cannot exceed 8000.

Column Row Wrapping Limit

Additionally, each column type has its own limit on the number of times it may be used in a list. This is to prevent excessive row wrapping in the SQL database, which could otherwise cause poor performance.

The default throttling limit for row wrapping is 6 rows.

For example, SQL Server row wrapping occurs after every eight calculated columns. That means you can add a maximum of 48 calculated columns (8 per row * 6 row maximum = 48) to a SharePoint list. Similar row wrapping limitations restrict you to 6 GUID columns per list and 94 Managed Metadata columns per list, though these are poorly documented.

Official Column Limits

What follows is a table from Microsoft's boundaries and limitations documentation:

 Field Type           Maximum Value   Size per Column
_____________________________________________________
Single line of text |       255     | 30 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Mltpl Lines of Text |       350     | 22 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Choice              |       255     | 30 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Choice (mltpl slct) |       350     | 22 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Number              |       550     | 14 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Currency            |       550     | 14 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Date and Time       |       550     | 14 bytes
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Lookup              |       750     | 10 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Yes / No            |      1000     | 7 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Person or group     |       750     | 10 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Hyperlink or picture|       127     | 60 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Calculated          |       255     | 30 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
GUID                |       350     | 22 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Int                 |       750     | 10 bytes  
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Managed metadata    |       190     | 60 bytes for the first,  
                    |               | 40 bytes for each subsequent             
--------------------+---------------+----------------
Geolocation         |        2      | 30 bytes
--------------------+---------------+----------------

More Information

For more information, see Software boundaries and limits for SharePoint 2016 and Software boundaries and limits for SharePoint 2013.

See also the explanation for "Row Size Limit" under "Resource throttles and limits" on the page Manage large lists and libraries in SharePoint:

Specifies the maximum number of table rows internal to the database used for a list or library item. To accommodate wide lists with many columns, each item is wrapped over several internal table rows, up to 6 rows and up to a total of 8,000 bytes (excluding attachments).

For example, if you have a list with many small columns, one that contains hundreds of Yes/No columns, then you could exceed this limit, in which case you would not be able to add more Yes/No columns to the list, but you still may be allowed to add columns of a different type.

Administrators can only set this limit by using the object model, not through the user interface.

Solution 2

180 is still under limit, its depend which type of column you are using .you can create up to 276 columns in a list for columns that contain a single line of text. Below the list column limit per type:

Single line of text: 276

Multiple Lines of Text: 192

Choice: 276

Number: 72

Currency: 72

Date and Time: 48

Lookup: 96

Yes / No: 96

Person or group: 96

Hyperlink or picture: 138

Calculated: 48

GUID: 6

Int: 96

Managed metadata: 94

Comments

[kenta.I]

Thank you very much. It helps me a lot.

[Patric]

I strongly believe this is wrong. For example the number type uses less bytes then "single line of text" but in your list we could create 276 single line fields and only 72 number fields. In reality you should be able to create more number fields then single line of text fields, right?