Do tables work well on mobile phones?

[hoangvu]

Hi there,

Wondering if you guys can help me?

I have some tables with big data but the problem is, when its showing mobile phones, some columns were lost. How to fix this problem? any alternatives to tables for using on mobile devices?

 

[savidge4]

Hi there,

Wondering if you guys can help me?

I have some tables with big data but the problem is, when its showing mobile phones, some columns were lost. How to fix this problem? any alternatives to tables for using on mobile devices?

Tables are a "responsive" no no. really the only way you can display this type of data and keep its structure would be the use of images ( I know that sucks ) The other possible option would be to throw those tables onto a a secondary non responsive site setup ( it will hold its shape )

 

[Mike001]

Well for another opinion tables can be used on responsive websites if they do not contain a large amount of columns. I have structured tables on websites that are viewed on mobile devices with 4 columns, that work fine in landscape mode.

Now keep in mind that the type of data that is contained in the cells can also make a difference. If that data is selectable, another words you could click it, that probably would not work. The reason I say this is that the cell would be so small that you would take a hit on mobility SEO because the cell would be too small to select.

But I have put sales date, 3 columns, on a website that was accessed on mobile to give, Part# , Price and Amount in stock that was used on a mobile device, usually phones by a sales staff and they thought it was great having that information that accessible.

It is all dependent on how you set it up and keep the column number of cells to a minimum.

By the way on that particular site I used JavaScript and media queries to display much more information if they were on a tablet and even more if they were on a laptop or desktop.

Just think it through and be creative.

I hope this helps,

Mike