> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.cfo.ai/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Build a table yourself > A 15-minute lesson for spreadsheet users: build a small Table block by hand, type values, write a formula, and watch the Model recalculate. Everything Ari builds, you can also build yourself. In this lesson we build a small revenue table for an imaginary coffee cart, without Ari, so you can see how cfo.ai's Variables and formulas differ from spreadsheet cells. By the end you will have a Page with a table that calculates revenue from cups sold and price, and recalculates when you change a number. You need about 15 minutes and a desktop browser. Pages cannot be edited in a phone browser. > [!NOTE] > > In a workspace with no Pages yet, the sidebar has no **Model** section. On the empty screen, choose **Add block**, then **Table block**. cfo.ai creates a Page with a table on it. Rename the Page from its title, then continue from step 3. **1. Create a Page** In the sidebar's **Model** section, select the **+** button labeled **New page**. cfo.ai creates a Page named **New Page** and opens it. Click the **New Page** title at the top of the Page, type `Coffee cart`, and press **Enter**. **2. Add a Table block** On the empty Page, choose **Table block**. Notice the hint **Build your table**. A new table is blank until you add rows or columns. **3. Add your first Variable** Select **Add row** at the bottom of the table. In the search field, type `Cups Sold`, then select **Create variable: Cups Sold**. Notice that cfo.ai adds a row of months across the top, or of your workspace's default period, such as quarters. A Variable is a named line of the Model, and it has one value for each period. **4. Type some values** Select the first month's cell in the **Cups Sold** row and type `1000`. Press **Tab** to move to the next month, type `1200`, press **Tab**, type `1500`, and press **Enter**. Notice the dashed underline under each number. It marks a cell that holds its own value. **5. Give a Variable one value for every month** Add another row and create a Variable named `Price per Cup`. Point at its row name and select the **fx** icon, **Edit variable formula**. The editor has two sections, **Actuals** and **Forecast**: the months up to your workspace's Last close, and the months after it. Type `4` in **Actuals**, select **Forecast** to open it, type `4` there too, and press **Enter**. Notice that every month now shows 4, with no underline. The row's formula fills every month for you; in a spreadsheet you would have copied the value across. **6. Write a formula** Add a third row and create a Variable named `Cart Revenue`. Open its formula editor the same way, and type this in both sections: ```text theme={null} `Cups Sold` * `Price per Cup` ``` As you type, autocomplete suggests the Variable names. Backticks wrap a name that contains spaces. Press **Enter**. Notice that **Cart Revenue** fills in for every month: 4,000 in the first month, 4,800 in the second, and 6,000 in the third. Later months show 0, because **Cups Sold** has no value there yet. The formula refers to Variables by name, not to cells such as `B7`, so it works in every month at once. **7. Change an input** Select the first month of **Cups Sold**, type `2000`, and press **Enter**. Notice that **Cart Revenue** for that month changes to 8,000 right away. Every number that depends on a value you change recalculates. **8. See what a number is made of** Point at the **Cart Revenue** row name and select the magnifier icon, **Drill in**. Notice the shaded rows that open beneath it: **Cups Sold** and **Price per Cup**, the inputs of its formula. Select **Clear drill-in** to close them. ## What you built You built a working piece of a Model by hand: three Variables, typed values, a formula that applies to the whole row, and a calculation that updates when an input changes. The tables Ari builds for you work the same way, so you can open any of them, read its formulas, and change them. ## Next steps * Learn what Variables and Dimensions are and how formulas pick their inputs: [Variables and Dimensions](/concepts/variables-and-dimensions.md) and [How formulas work](/concepts/formulas.md). * Split a row by product or region: [Break a number down](/guides/break-down-a-number.md). * Format numbers as currency and arrange the table: [Format and arrange a table](/guides/format-a-table.md). * Look up every formula function: [Formula functions](/reference/functions.md). * Delete the practice Page when you are done: point at it in the sidebar and select **Delete page**. This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.