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Quick answer
Put one header on Master, then enter =VSTACK(January!A2:C4,February!A2:C4) in A2. The practice result is six order IDs and $520 total.
Before you start
Use the fictional monthly-orders-practice.md and work in a disposable copy. Compare your result with the independent answer-check.md. Use only fictional data.
Step 1: Combine 2 Tabs Into 6 Clean Rows
January and February each contain three fictional orders, but the team needs one six-row list without a second header in the middle. We will append data rows with VSTACK and verify every order ID and the total. This is a same-file workflow, so it does not import from another spreadsheet or change source records.
Step 2: Inspect matching source columns
Create the January and February tabs from the practice card. Both use Order ID, Date, and Amount USD in columns A through C, with only three filled data rows each. Read the first and last IDs in each tab. The source ranges must have matching widths before VSTACK can place them underneath one another cleanly.
Step 3: Keep one header on Master
Add a Master tab and type the three column headings into A1 through C1 once. Leave A2 through C7 empty for the formula's spill. Do not include either source header row in the VSTACK arguments; using A1:C4 would insert a second header between the monthly blocks. A blocked destination cell can prevent the array result from expanding.
Step 4: Enter the bounded VSTACK formula
Select Master A2 and enter the exact formula shown. VSTACK appends January A2:C4 above February A2:C4. Google documents that it returns a larger array in the order of its arguments. These are intentionally bounded ranges, because open-ended columns would include blank rows that complicate this beginner example. The formula should spill into six rows and three columns.
=VSTACK(January!A2:C4,February!A2:C4)Step 5: Read the complete output
In Master, read the six IDs from top to bottom: J-101, J-102, J-103, F-201, F-202, and F-203. Confirm that each date and amount still sits beside its original ID. The February rows must begin directly after the January rows. If you see a repeated header or blank block, revisit the referenced row numbers before doing any downstream analysis.
Step 6: 6 IDs, $520, One Header
The six fictional amounts add to five hundred twenty dollars. Compare that independent sum with the Master output; a correct row count without the correct total could hide a missing or shifted amount. If you later add an order below row four or a new month, extend the formula deliberately and repeat the check. This formula updates values inside its named ranges, but not its range boundaries.
Check your result
Master A1:C1 contains one header row. In Master A2 enter =VSTACK(January!A2:C4,February!A2:C4) in an English/U.S. locale. The spill has six rows in this exact order: J-101, J-102, J-103, F-201, F-202, F-203. It contains no repeated headers. The amounts total 120+80+45+90+75+110 = $520. A seventh source row is not included until the ranges are extended.
Limits and troubleshooting
The two source tabs must have the same three-column structure and real, populated rows in A2:C4. Fixed ranges do not automatically include a fourth row or a new month. If the sheet locale expects semicolons instead of commas, use that locale's formula separator after checking the displayed syntax. Keep the formula output area clear.
Product references
Practice downloads.
The exercise files contain invented information. Save a local copy before editing.