How to Use Format-Table in PowerShell: Syntax and Examples

Use Format-Table in PowerShell to display objects as formatted tables. You pipe objects to Format-Table and specify properties to show columns. It helps make output easier to read in a tabular form.

Syntax

The basic syntax of Format-Table is:

• Get-Command | Format-Table -Property Name, Version, Source
• -Property specifies which object properties to show as columns.
• -AutoSize adjusts column widths to fit content.
• -Wrap wraps long text in columns.
• -HideTableHeaders hides the column headers.

powershell

Format-Table [-Property <string[]>] [-AutoSize] [-Wrap] [-HideTableHeaders] [<CommonParameters>]

Example

This example shows how to list running processes with selected properties in a table format. It uses Get-Process piped to Format-Table to display the process name, ID, and CPU time.

powershell

Get-Process | Format-Table -Property Name, Id, CPU -AutoSize

Output

Name                      Id    CPU
----                      --    ---
System Idle Process         0     0
System                      4     0
smss                      388     0
csrss                     464     0
wininit                   528     0
...

Common Pitfalls

One common mistake is using Format-Table too early in a pipeline, which converts objects to formatting data and breaks further processing. Always use Format-Table as the last command in the pipeline.

Another pitfall is not using -AutoSize when columns have long text, causing truncated output.

powershell

Get-Process | Format-Table -Property Name | Where-Object { $_.Name -like "*svchost*" }

# This will fail because Format-Table outputs formatting data, not objects.

# Correct way:
Get-Process | Where-Object { $_.Name -like "*svchost*" } | Format-Table -Property Name, Id -AutoSize

Quick Reference

Parameter	Description
-Property	Selects which properties to display as columns.
-AutoSize	Adjusts column widths to fit content, avoiding truncation.
-Wrap	Wraps long text within columns instead of truncating.
-HideTableHeaders	Hides the column headers in the output.
-GroupBy	Groups output rows by a property value.

Key Takeaways

Use Format-Table at the end of a pipeline to format output as a table.

Specify properties with -Property to control which columns appear.

Use -AutoSize to prevent column truncation and improve readability.

Avoid using Format-Table before filtering or processing objects.

Use -Wrap to handle long text in table columns gracefully.