Key Takeaways:
- Excel keyboard shortcuts can increase productivity and efficiency when working with formulas.
- Basic cell manipulation shortcuts such as copying, pasting, and selecting ranges can save time and streamline workflow.
- Using keyboard shortcuts in the Excel formula bar can speed up formula input, selection, and function usage, allowing users to work more quickly and accurately.
Struggling with endless typing to format your Excel sheets? You don’t have to. Here are 15 keyboard shortcuts to help you work smarter, faster, and more efficiently with the Excel formula bar.
Basic Excel Shortcuts
Excel-lovers, take note! There are keyboard shortcuts that can help you speed up your workflow. We’ll explore them in this section. From navigating cells to selecting and copying data – all the way to expanding the formula bar for complex formulas. Let’s revolutionize the way you use Excel!
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Cell Manipulation
Copy and paste cells or ranges quickly with ‘Ctrl + C’ and ‘Ctrl + V’. Merge cells by selecting them, right-clicking, then choosing ‘Format Cells’ and checking the box for ‘Merge cells’. Resize columns and rows by hovering your mouse over the right boundary of a column, then click and drag to increase or decrease the width. Hide or unhide rows or columns with ‘Hide’ or ‘Unhide’ after highlighting them and right-clicking.
Speed up your Excel experience with shortcuts like ‘Ctrl + Arrow (Up/Down/Left/Right)’. These techniques may seem tedious at first but will eventually help make using Excel more efficient and accurate. Practicing them will become second nature, making the experience in Excel more enjoyable. Now let’s move on to the next topic – Excel Formula Bar Shortcuts!
Excel Formula Bar Shortcuts
I’m an Excel enthusiast! I’m always searching for ways to be more productive and simplify my workflow. The formula bar is a great tool within Excel, and there are many keyboard shortcuts that make it even quicker. In this segment, I’ll show you the shortcuts I find most helpful. These can be grouped into three categories: inputting formulas, selecting formulas and formula functions. With these shortcuts, you can speed up your Excel workflow!
Image credits: manycoders.com by Yuval Washington
Formula Input
Formula Input is separate from typing values like text or numbers. To use it, you need to know the syntax of formulas and their functions.
You can enter formulas directly into cells or use the Formula Bar for more advanced calculations. The Formula Bar shows all the parts of your formula at once.
Using keyboard shortcuts can help you work faster with formulas in Excel. For example, press F2 to edit the selected cell on the Formula bar. Also, pressing Ctrl + Enter will quickly fill a range down with your formula.
Now, let’s explore Formula Selection and learn tips for selecting formulas in your sheets!
Formula Selection
Selecting cells in Excel is easy! Just click the one you want with the mouse and hold down Ctrl to select multiple. To unselect, click outside the selection or hit Esc. There are also handy keyboard shortcuts like F2 for Edit Mode, Ctrl+Left Arrow for moving within a cell and Ctrl+Home for the start of a worksheet. Remember, accuracy with formulas is key! Copying the original formula to another cell as a backup is a smart move. Now, let’s look at Formula Functions!
Formula Functions
Formula Functions are a great way to make complex calculations! They can do everything from addition to financial analysis. Popular ones include SUM, AVERAGE, COUNT, MAX and MIN.
You can get pre-built ones from the Insert Function button on the formula bar. Or, you can make your own custom functions with Visual Basic for Applications (VBA). Don’t forget to always start formulas with an equal sign (=).
If you’re new to Formula Functions, it may seem a bit daunting – but don’t worry! Try practicing simple ones like SUM and AVERAGE on small data sets first. Then, if you’re dealing with larger data sets or multiple formulas, break them up into smaller parts or cells. This will help you keep track of your formulas and debug any errors that may come up.
Five Facts About 15 Keyboard Shortcuts for the Excel Formula Bar:
- ✅ The formula bar is a feature in Excel that displays the formulas used in cells and allows users to edit them directly. (Source: Microsoft)
- ✅ Using the F2 key in the formula bar allows users to edit cells without having to double-click on them. (Source: ExcelJet)
- ✅ Pressing Ctrl + A in the formula bar selects all text in the bar. (Source: Ablebits)
- ✅ Ctrl + Shift + Enter is a keyboard shortcut used to enter an array formula into a cell in the formula bar. (Source: Excel Campus)
- ✅ Double-clicking on the little black square in the bottom right corner of a cell with a formula copies the formula to adjacent cells. (Source: Lifewire)
FAQs about 15 Keyboard Shortcuts For The Excel Formula Bar
What are the 15 Keyboard Shortcuts for the Excel Formula Bar?
The 15 keyboard shortcuts for the Excel Formula Bar are:
- Ctrl + A – Select All
- Ctrl + Z – Undo
- Ctrl + Y – Redo
- Ctrl + X – Cut
- Ctrl + C – Copy
- Ctrl + V – Paste
- Ctrl + F2 – Open Syntax Help
- Ctrl + Shift + U – Expand Formula Bar
- Shift + Enter – Add New Line in Formula Bar
- F2 – Edit Cell
- F4 – Toggle Absolute/Relative References
- F9 – Calculate Worksheet
- Alt + Enter – Add Line Break in Cell
- Alt + Down – Open Dropdown List of Cell Content
- Ctrl + Shift + Enter – Input as Array Formula