---
title: Column and variable types in AddMaple
category: Prepare Your Data
slug: column-and-variable-types
blurb: Overview of how AddMaple detects column types—and where to read about each one in depth.
order: 2
searchKeywords:
  - column types
  - data types
  - variable types
  - question types
  - detected columns
---

# Column and variable types in AddMaple

When you upload a survey file, AddMaple scans headers and sample values and assigns a **column type** to each field. That type controls default charts, how pivots count responses, and which preparation tools apply.

Use this page as a map. For step-by-step preparation (merging split columns, grouping grids, cleaning labels), start with [Prepare messy survey data for analysis](/help/guides/prepare-messy-survey-data) and [Importing and preparing data](/help/preparation/importing-and-preparing-data). When you need detail on a specific type, open the guides below.

## Detected survey columns

These are the main types AddMaple recognizes on import. You can override any assignment in [Manage Columns](/help/preparation/manage-columns).

| Type | When you see it | Deep dive |
|------|-----------------|-----------|
| **Multiple choice** | One answer per respondent (single-select categorical) | [Multiple Choice](/help/data-types/multiple-choice) |
| **Multi-select** | Select-all-that-apply, tags, or checkbox sets | [Multi-Select](/help/data-types/multi-select) |
| **Numeric** | Counts, ratings as numbers, amounts, percentages | [Numeric](/help/data-types/numeric-data-type) |
| **Opinion scale** | Likert or agreement scales (numeric or text labels) | [Opinion Scale Columns](/help/data-types/likert-single) |
| **Grouped opinion scales** | Several scale items shown together | [Grouped Opinion Scale Charts](/help/data-types/grouped-likert) |

AddMaple also detects **dates**, **text / open-ended** fields, and **boolean** yes/no columns. Those are covered in [Which column types are detected?](/help/frequently-asked-questions/which-column-types-are-detected) and in [Importing and preparing data](/help/preparation/importing-and-preparing-data).

## Custom variables

Sometimes you need a column that does not exist in the export—or detection did not merge options the way you need.

| Task | Guide |
|------|--------|
| Build filtered or rule-based segments (personas, tiers, flags) | [How to create custom columns/variables](/help/data-types/create-segment) |
| Manually define a multi-select when columns were not merged | [Create a custom multi-select column](/help/data-types/custom-multi-select) |
| Set fixed bins for numeric or date data | [How to create custom bins](/help/data-types/custom-bins) |

## Related preparation

After types look right, you may still need to:

- **Combine or group columns** — [How to combine columns](/help/preparation/combining-columns), [Group Data](/help/preparation/group)
- **Clean category labels** — [How to work with legends](/help/legend/legend), [Clean with AI](/help/legend/clean-with-ai)
- **Turn categories into numbers for means or composites** — [Assign Numbers](/help/preparation/assign-numbers), [Numeric Factors](/help/preparation/numeric-factors)
- **Adjust automatic binning** — [Number Binning](/help/preparation/number-binning), [Date Binning](/help/preparation/date-binning)

## See also

- [Manage Columns](/help/preparation/manage-columns)
- [Ordered vs Independent categories](/help/legend/ordered-vs-independent)