Is it possible to filter and have data dropdowns via validations?

[Guest]

I am creating a spreadsheet where I have dropdowns via the Data Validation
function. I then want to Autofilter on the values in my dropdown. I know
this sounds basic, but when i attempt to AutoFilter, I still see the entire
contents of the spreadsheet and the little filter downarrow (which turns blue
when the filter is on) is not blue.

 

[Debra Dalgleish]

The first row of the table should have the column headings, e.g.

Name Dept Salary

The heading cells don't have data validation, or dropdown lists.

In the cells below, you could use data validation lists. For example, in
the Dept column, a data validation list would show a list of department
names.

To AutoFilter, select a cell in the table
Choose Data>Filter>AutoFilter
Dropdown arrows will be added to the column headings.
Select from the headings dropdowns to filter the list