If you use Microsoft Excel, you know that this robust spreadsheet application offers tons of features and functions. By using keyboard shortcuts for the most common actions, you have more time to focus on the formulas, calculations, and other data you’re working with.

These lists give you shortcuts for everyday actions you’d perform. Plus, they use simple key combinations that are easy to remember.

Common Excel keyboard shortcuts

For the most common actions you may perform in an Excel workbook, these keyboard shortcuts are good ones to keep in mind. And they work in other Microsoft Office applications on Windows like Word and PowerPoint.

Action Keyboard shortcut
Copy a selection Ctrl + C
Cut a selection Ctrl + X
Paste a selection Ctrl + V
Undo the last action Ctrl + Z
Redo the last action Ctrl + Y
Remove the cell contents Delete

Navigating an Excel workbook

There are some basic keyboard shortcuts you can use in Microsoft Excel for navigating your active sheet and the workbook. These can save you time from having to grab your mouse or use your trackpad.

Action Keyboard shortcut
Open a workbook Ctrl + O
Save a workbook Ctrl + S
Close a workbook Ctrl + W
Go to the File tab Alt + F
Go to the Home tab Alt + H
Go to the Insert tab Alt + N
Go to the Page Layout tab Alt + P
Go to the Formulas tab Alt + M
Go to the Data tab Alt + A
Go to the View tab Alt + W
Go to the next sheet Ctrl + Page down
Go to the previous sheet Ctrl + Page up

Tip: Interested in more ways to work faster? Check out these Windows shortcuts you might not know about.

Moving around a spreadsheet

Zipping around your current worksheet is much easier with these keyboard shortcuts. Whether you want to move up and down or zoom in and out, you’ll do it quickly.

Action Keyboard shortcut
Move to the first cell Ctrl + Home
Move to the previous cell Shift + Tab
Move to the last cell Ctrl + End
Move up one cell Up arrow
Move down one cell Down arrow
Move left one cell Left arrow
Move right one cell Right arrow
Move one screen up Page up
Move one screen down Page down
Move one screen left Alt + Page up
Move one screen right Alt + Page down
Zoom in Ctrl + Alt + Equal sign
Zoom out Ctrl + Alt + Minus sign

Selecting cells and sheets

When you want to work with selections, you can use the following shortcuts. Not only can you select columns and rows, but you can also extend your selections with key combinations.

Action Keyboard shortcut
Select the entire sheet Ctrl + A
Select the current and next sheet Ctrl + Shift + Page down
Select the current and previous sheet Ctrl + Shift + Page up
Select a column Ctrl + Spacebar
Select a row Shift + Spacebar
Extend the selection by one cell Shift + Arrow key
Extend the selection to the first cell Ctrl + Shift + Home

Tip: Want to become an Excel pro? Look at these tips and tricks to master your Excel spreadsheets.

Formatting cells and data

After you use the above shortcuts to make selections, you can format the cells with the list below. You can manipulate text, data, and cells, open the formatting dialogue boxes, and more.

Action Keyboard shortcut
Bold the text Ctrl + B
Italicize the text Ctrl + I
Underline the text Ctrl + U
Strikethrough the text Ctrl + 5
Apply the General number format Ctrl + Shift + Tilde sign
Apply the Currency format Ctrl + Shift + Dollar sign
Apply the Percentage format Ctrl + Shift + Percent sign
Apply the Scientific format Ctrl + Shift + Caret sign
Apply the Date format Ctrl + Shift + Number sign
Apply the Time format Ctrl + Shift + At sign
Apply a border to selected cells Ctrl + Shift + Ampersand
Remove a border from selected cells Ctrl + Shift + Underscore
Enter the current date Ctrl + Semicolon
Enter the current time Ctrl + Shift + Semicolon
Copy a formula from the above cell to the current cell Ctrl + Apostrophe
Start a new line in the current cell Alt + Enter
Open the Format Cells dialogue box Ctrl + 1
Open the Insert dialogue box Ctrl + Shift + Plus sign
Open the Delete dialogue box Ctrl + Minus sign
Open the Paste Special dialogue box Ctrl + Alt + V
Open the Insert Hyperlink dialogue box Ctrl + K
Open the Create Table dialogue box Ctrl + L or Ctrl + T
Open the Workbook Statistics dialogue box Ctrl + Shift + G
Open the Quick Analysis box Ctrl + Q

Using the Function keys

One more list of shortcuts that you should check out is for the Functions keys. Without remembering a key combination, you can perform quick actions with a simple click.

Action Function key
Displays the Help task pane F1
Place the insertion point at the start of the current cell’s contents F2
Opens the Paste Name dialogue box (if names are defined) F3
Repeats the last action F4
Opens the Go To dialogue box F5
Switches between the sheet, ribbon, task pane, and Zoom controls F6
Opens the Spelling dialogue box F7
Turns Extend Mode on or off F8
Calculates all sheets F9
Turns Key Tips on or off F10
Creates a chart for the current range F11
Opens the Save As dialogue box F12

Hopefully, these lists of keyboard shortcuts for Excel have you on your way to doing things quicker in your workbooks and spreadsheets. For more, check out these Excel tricks that can also improve your workflow.






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