Successful people says that there is no shortcut to success. But when it’s about Excel it’s different.
More Shortcuts More Productivity.
Excel is one of the most common and powerful applications. It is an application which is using for many years, maybe every computer users are very familiar with the name of this application because we get to know about Excel at the beginning level of computer learning. Excel is one of the most useful Microsoft tools which is used in every sector. Many things are possible to do with this application. There are many companies that manage their organization data in Excel.
Excel has several advanced features, one of them is using shortcut keys. By using Excel shortcut keys, you can undoubtedly speed up your work process and further you can increase the overall productivity of your work.
In this article, we have discussed a wide range of Excel keyboard shortcuts. Excel has a pretty long list of shortcuts, and we’ve summarized most of the shortcuts in different sections so that it will be very easy to memorize. All the shortcuts below are compatible with almost every version of Excel.
Before moving to the Excel shortcuts section, let’s understand the fundamental concept of shortcuts:
- Using plus sign (+) in the shortcut, means you must press multiple keys at once. For example, Ctrl + C, means you need to press the ‘Ctrl‘ key and the ‘C‘ key together.
- When a shortcut list contains a comma (,) it means you have to press multiple keys in sequence. For example, Alt + H, A, R, we need to press the ‘Alt‘ key and ‘H‘ together, then release those keys and press A and R one after the other.
- There are some function keys (eg F1, F2, F3….), which are used as shortcut keys in Excel. There are some keyboards where function keys work with the ‘Fn‘ button. So in that case first press the ‘Fn‘ key to enable the function key and then press the corresponding shortcut key.
Shortcut Key to open Excel
Press Windows Logo key + R, Then a popup will appear and type excel in the box and press enter.
Frequently used Excel Shortcut Key
| Shortcut Key/s | Action |
| Ctrl + N | Create new Workbook |
| Ctrl + O | Open an existing Workbook from the local storage |
| Ctrl + S | Save Workbook |
| F12 | Displays the Save As dialog box. |
| Alt + F4 | Close Excel. |
| Ctrl + A | Select the entire sheet |
| Ctrl + C | Copy the selected cell |
| Ctrl + X | Cut the selected cell |
| Ctrl + V | Paste the copied content |
| Ctrl + Z | Undo the last action |
| Ctrl + Y | Repeat the last action |
| Ctrl + B | Apply or remove bold formatting |
| Ctrl + I | Apply or remove italic formatting |
| Ctrl + U | Apply or remove underlined formatting |
| Ctrl + W | Close a workbook |
| Ctrl + F2 | Display the print preview window |
| Ctrl + P | Print the current sheet |
| F1 | Open the Excel help center |
| PgDn | Move one screen down |
| PgUp | Move one screen Up |
| Down Arrow ( ↓ ) | Move one cell down |
| Up Arrow ( ↑ ) | Move one cell up |
| Shift + F11 | Add a new worksheet |
| Ctrl + PgDn | Move to the next worksheet |
| Ctrl + PgUp | Move to the previous worksheet |
| Ctrl + Tab | Switch to the next workbook |
| Ctrl + Shift + Tab | Switch to the previous worksheet |
| Ctrl + F9 | Minimize the current workbook window |
| Ctrl + F10 | Maximize current workbook window |
| Ctrl + Mouse wheel scroll | Zoom-in / Zoom-out |
| Ctrl + Alt + V | Display the Special Paste dialog box |
| Ctrl + F | Display find and replace dialog box with find selected |
| Ctrl + H | Display find and replace dialog box with replace selected |
| Ctrl+Enter | Complete entry and stay in the same cell |
Excel Shortcut Key for Navigation
| Shortcut Key | Action |
| Home | Move to the first column of the same row |
| Ctrl + Home | Move to the first cell of the worksheet |
| Ctrl + End | Move to the last cell of the data region in the worksheet |
| End | Turn On/Off End mode |
| Right Arrow ( → ) | Move to one cell right |
| Left Arrow ( ← ) | Move to one cell left |
| Up Arrow ( ↑ ) | Move to one cell up |
| Down Arrow ( ↓ ) | Move to one cell down |
| Ctrl + Right Arrow (→) | Move to the right edge of the data region |
| Ctrl + Left Arrow (←) | Move to the left edge of the data region |
| Ctrl + Up Arrow (↑) | Move to the top edge of the data region |
| Ctrl + Down Arrow (↓) | Move to the bottom edge of the data region |
| PgUp | Move one screen up |
| PgDn | Move one screen down |
| Alt + PgDn | Move one screen right |
| Alt + PgUp | Move one screen left |
| Tab | Move to the next cell |
| Shift + Tab | Move to the previous cell |
Selection Related Excel Shortcut Key
| Shortcut Key | Action |
| Ctrl + A | Select the entire sheet |
| Ctrl + Shift + Spacebar | Select all in that data region |
| Shift + Space | Select entire row |
| Ctrl + Space | Select entire column |
| Shift + Right Arrow (→) | Extend the selection from the current cell to the Right |
| Shift + Left Arrow (←) | Extend the selection from the current cell to the Left |
| Shift + Up Arrow (↑) | Extend the selection from the current cell to the Up |
| Shift + Down Arrow (↓) | Extend the selection from the current cell to the Down |
| Ctrl + Shift + Right Arrow (→) | Extend the selection to the last column of the data region |
| Ctrl + Shift + Left Arrow (←) | Extend the selection to the first column of the data region |
| Ctrl + Shift + Up Arrow (↑) | Extend the selection to the first row of the data region |
| Ctrl + Shift + Down Arrow (↓) | Extend the selection to the last row of the data region |
| Shift + PgUp | Extend selection one screen up |
| Shift + PgDn | Extend selection one screen down |
| Alt + Shift + PgDn | Extend selection to one screen right |
| Alt + Shift + PgUp | Extend selection to one screen left |
| Shift + Click | Selection adjacent cells |
| Ctrl + Click | Selection non-adjacent cells |
| Shift + Home | Select up to the first column of the same row |
| Ctrl + Shift + Home | Select up to the first cell in the worksheet |
| Ctrl + Shift + End | Select up to the last cell in the worksheet |
| Ctrl + Shift + PgDn | Select the current and next sheets in a workbook. |
| Ctrl + Shift + PgUp | Select the current and previous sheets in a workbook. |
Excel Shortcut Key for Number Formatting
| Shortcut Key | Action |
| Ctrl + Shift + $ | Apply the Currency format with two decimal place |
| Ctrl + Shift + % | Apply the Percentage format with no decimal places. |
| Ctrl + Shift + ! | Apply the Number format with two decimal places (Thousands separator, and minus sign (-) for negative values) |
| Ctrl + Shift + ~ | Apply the General number format. |
| Ctrl + Shift + # | Apply the Date format with the day-month-year. |
| Ctrl + Shift + ^ | Apply the Scientific number format with two decimal places. |
| Ctrl + Shift + @ | Apply the Time format (Hour and Minute with AM or PM) |
Excel Shortcut Key for Formatting Cell
| Shortcut Key | Action |
| Alt + H, A, C | Move the cell contents to the center |
| Alt + H, A, L | Move the cell contents to the left side |
| Alt + H, A, R | Move the cell contents to the right side |
| Alt + H, F, G | Increase the font size of the selected cell by one step |
| Alt + H, F, K | Decrease the font size of the selected cell by one step |
| Alt + H + 6 | Move your content farther away from the cell border |
| Alt + H + 5 | Move your content closer to the cell border |
| Ctrl + Shift + F | Open the Format Cells dialog box with the font tab selected |
| Ctrl + 5 | Apply or remove strikethrough formatting |
| Alt + H, H | Choose a fill color |
| Alt + H, H, N | Choose a No-fill color |
| Ctrl + Shift + ampersand (&) | Add an outline border to the selected cells. |
| Ctrl + Shift + underline ( _ ) | Remove the outline border from the selected cells. |
| Ctrl + SemiColon (;) | Enter the current date in a call |
| Ctrl + Shift + colon (:) | Enter the current time a cell |
| Ctrl + Shift + Plus sign (+) | Open the Insert dialog box to insert a blank cell. |
| Ctrl + Minus sign (-) | Open the Delete dialog box to delete the selected cell. |
| Ctrl + grave accent (`) | Switch between displaying cell values or formulas in the worksheet. |
| Ctrl + apostrophe (‘) | Copy a formula from the cell above the active cell into the cell or the Formula Bar. |
| Ctrl + D | Copy the above cell contents and format in the current cell. |
| Ctrl + Q | Open the quick analysis options for selected cells that contain data. |
| Ctrl + Shift + G | Display the Workbook Statistics dialog box. |
Excel Shortcut Key for Cell Edit Mode
| Shortcut Key | Action |
| F2 | Edit the active cell |
| Ctrl + K | Add hyperlink |
| Alt + Down Arrow (↓) | Display auto-complete list |
| Ctrl + G | Open Go To dialog box |
| Delete | Delete one character to the right |
| Backspace | Deletes one character to the left |
| Shift + End | Select up to the end of the line. |
| Alt + Enter | Start a new line in the same cell. |
| Shift + F2 | Insert or edit notes in the current cell. |
| Tab | Completed the cell entry and move to the next cell. |
| Shift + Tab | Completed the cell entry and move to the previous cell. |
| Enter | Completed the cell entry and move to the cell below. |
| Shift + Enter | Completed the cell entry and move to the cell above. |
| Space | Check and uncheck the box |
| Ctrl + R | Fill the selected cell as the same of left cell |
| Ctrl + D | Fill the selected cell as same of the above cell |
| Ctrl + ; | Insert current date |
| Ctrl + Shift + : | Insert current time |
| Esc | Cancel cell entry |
Excel Shortcut Key related to Rows and Columns
| Shortcut Key | Action |
| Ctrl + Plus( + ) | Insert the selected number of rows or column |
| Ctrl + Plus( + ) | Display Insert Dialog box |
| Ctrl + Minus(-) | Delete the selected number of rows or columns |
| Ctrl + Minus(-) | Display Delete dialog box |
| Delete | Delete the content of selected cells |
| Ctrl + 0 | Hide columns |
| Ctrl + Shift + 0 | Unhide columns |
| Ctrl + 9 | Hide rows |
| Ctrl + Shift + 9 | Unhide rows |
| Alt + Shift + Right Arrow (→) | Create a Group of selected rows or columns |
| Alt + Shift + Left Arrow (←) | Ungroup selected rows or columns |
| Alt + Shift + Right Arrow (→) | Open Group Dialog Box |
| Alt + Shift + Left Arrow (←) | Open Ungroup Dialog Box |
| Ctrl + 8 | Hide or show outline symbols |
Excel Shortcut Key for Cell Border
| Shortcut Key | Action |
| Alt + H, B, A | All Borders |
| Alt + H, B, N | No Border |
| Alt + H, B, S | Outside Borders |
| Alt + H, B, O | Bottom Border |
| Alt + H, B, P | Top Border |
| Alt + H, B, L | Left Border |
| Alt + H, B, R | Right Border |
| Alt + H, B, T | Thick Outside Borders |
| Alt + H, B, B | Bottom Double Border |
| Alt + H, B, H | Thick Bottom Border |
| Alt + H, B, D | Top and Bottom Border |
| Alt + H, B, C | Top and Thick Bottom Border |
| Alt + H, B, U | Top and Double Bottom Border |
| Alt + H, B, W | Draw Border |
| Alt + H, B, G | Border Grid |
| Alt + H, B, E | Erase Border |
| Alt + H, B, I | Line Color |
| Alt + H, B, Y | Line Style |
Excel Shortcut Key for Table
| Shortcut Key | Action |
| Ctrl + T | Insert table |
| Alt + Down Arrow (↓) | Open the AutoFilter Menu dialog box. |
| Ctrl + Shift + L | Turn on filtering for the selected cell |
| Alt + C | Clear slicer filter |
| Ctrl + Shift + T | Toggle table total row |
| Ctrl + M | Move the table. |
| Ctrl + R | Rename the table. |
Other Excel Shortcut Key
| Shortcut Key | Action |
| F7 | Open the Spelling dialog box |
| Alt + F11 | Open the VBA Editor window |
| Ctrl + 6 | Hide or show objects |
| Alt + ‘ | Display Style dialog box |
| Alt + Space | Display control menu |
| Alt + F, T | Open the Excel Options dialog box |
| Alt + F, D | Open the Excel account dialog box |
| Alt + F1 | Create an embedded chart of the data in the current range. |
| F11 | Create a chart in the new sheet |
| Alt | Activate access keys |
| Shift + F10 | Displays the context menu for a selected item. |
| Ctrl + Shift + U | Extend or collapse the formula bar. |
| Ctrl + F1 | Display or Hide the ribbon. |
| F5 | Display the Go To dialog box |
| Alt + M | Go to the Formula tab. |
| Ctrl + F6 | Switches between the workbook window |
| Alt + F8 | Displays the Macro dialog to create, run, edit, or delete a macro. |
| Shift + F7 | Open the Thesaurus dialog box |
| Ctrl + E | Flash fill |
1. Excel insert row shortcut
Answer: Just press Ctrl + Plus(+) to insert row in Excel.
2. Shortcut key for filter in Excel
Answer: Press CTRL+shift +L to Turn on filtering for the selected cell, and Alt + ↓ key is used for Opening the AutoFilter Menu dialog box.
3. Scroll lock shortcut
Answer: If you want to lock the Excel cell then you have to press Scroll Lock from your keyboard, it also depending on your keyboard, this might also be labeled as a ScrLk key.
4. Shortcut for merge cell
Answer: Select the cells you want to merge then press Alt+H+M+M
5. Paste special shortcut key
Answer: The shortcut key for the spacial paste dialog box is Ctrl+Alt+V.
6. Excel save as shortcut
Answer: Excel save as shortcut is F12.
7. Pivot table shortcut key
Answer: If you want to create a pivot table for the selected cell, then press Alt+V+N+Enter.
8. Insert a column in Excel shortcut
Answer: Press Ctrl + Plus(+) to insert column in Excel
9. Excel merge and center shortcut
Answer: Select the cells you want to merge and center then press ALT+H+M+C
10. Excel new sheet shortcut
Answer: SHIFT+F11 key is used as a shortcut key to insert a new worksheet.
12. Delete row Excel shortcut
Answer: If you want to delete an Excel row then you have to press Ctrl+Minus Sign(-), This shortcut also works to delete the column.
This is the complete list of keyboard shortcuts for Microsoft Excel, if you want to become an Excel expert, I suggest you learn about some shortcuts and start using them as part of your daily work. We know that it is quite difficult to remember all the shortcuts, but if you try to use them every day, it will be memorized automatically and you will be much more productive in less time.
Read Also: 200+ Keyboard Shortcut Keys of Computer.
0 Comments