Not directly, in the way you mean. (That is, there is currently no way for a user to specify the column total for a particular view should be used as a variable in a formula.)
What you are trying to do is perform a multi-record calculation — which can be one of the most difficult things to accomplish with Airtable. Fortunately, though, yours is a pretty straight-forward application, which makes it possible, although not entirely painless.
This makes use of the technique of linking every record of one table to a single record of another. ISorry, @Jeremy_Oglesby…) Here’s how you would implement it:
-
Create a new table in the base called [Calc].
- Delete the default
{Notes} and {Attachements} fields, leaving only {Name}.
- Delete the three default records.
-
In your main table (which I’ll refer to as [Main]), create a single-line text field called {Link2Main}.
-
Enter ‘.’ — that is, the period character — in every cell in the {Link2Main} column.
Easiest way to do so:
- Select the
{Link2Main} field in row 1 of your table and type ‘.’ (a period).
- While that cell is still active, press
Ctrl-C to copy the value.
- Click the header for
{Link2Main}. this will select all cells in the column.
- Press
Ctrl-V. This pastes the copied ‘.’ into every cell in the column.
-
Right-click on the header for {Link2Main}.
- Select ‘Customize field type’.
- Change the field type from single-line text to linked-record, with
[Calc] as the target table.
Airtable whirs for a moment while it changes the field configuration. When it finishes, every record in [Main] will now be linked to the first (and only) record in [Calc], which is named ‘.’.
You are now ready to define the fields that will let you sum all existing records in [Main]. However, for the values of any records added to the base later to be included in the total, you will need to link them to [Calc] as they are added, which you can do using the traditional linked-record mechanism, by dragging the fill handle of {Link2Calc} in an already linked record into your newly added records, or by copy-and-pasting a period character into the {Link2Calc} fields of your new records.
-
In [Calc], create a rollup field called [Total].
- It should follow the link back to
[Main].
- It should roll up whatever field in
[Main] you wish to total.
- It should use the aggregation function
SUM(values).
Now, if you need to make use of the column total in a formula in [Main], you can do so by defining a lookup field in [Main] that looks to [Calc] and references {Total}.
To make use of the column total in a table other than [Main], you’ll first need to define a linked-record field in [OtherTable] that links to [Calc] and link your record(s) to the record named ‘.’. You can then access {Calc::Total} — that is, the {Total} field from the [Calc] table — with a lookup or rollup field.
