Excel contains quick and helpful tips to help you improve your files. You can do things such as add borders to all the cells or neatly divide phone numbers, so they are easy to read. You can start by understanding some basic formulas or dig into the following tips.
Beginner-Friendly Excel Tips
Excel may seem intimidating at first with all the things you can do. But, if you break it down into smaller steps and give it some time, you’ll be amazed at how many tricks you know.
How to Add Borders to the Excel Cells
You’ve added all the information to your file, but you want to make it easier to read. You can easily add borders to the cells by selecting all the cells you want to add the borders too. Once you’ve chosen them, press the Alt+H+B+A, all simultaneously. You’ll see the border applied to the cells when you let go.
How to Make Phone Numbers Easy to Read in Excel
Did you get a file where all the phone numbers aren’t divided? They’re bunched together, and you don’t know where the read code ends. By applying the following Excel tip, you can. For example, your file reads 5555555555, and you want it to look like (555) 555-5555. Quickly add the parenthesis so you can easily read the numbers.
In the cell beside one that has all the numbers together, type the phone number the way you want it to appear for all of them. Press the down arrow, so the bottom cell is highlighted, and press Ctrl + E, and you automatically see those bunch of numbers turn into something you can read.
How to Capitalize the First Letter of Text
Did someone think it was funny to type a name like this: JuDy SaNhZ? You can easily fix that by doing the following. On the cell beside the one with the crazy text, type the following command =Proper; when you start typing this command, you’ll see it suggested below.
Click on it and choose the cell that has the name you want to fix. Add the closing parenthesis and press enter. That’s all there is to it.
How to Remove Blank Rows in Excel
Sure, you could right-click on each row and choose the delete option. But this can take forever if you have a lot of empty rows to erase. Here’s a faster way. Select the entire range, and when everything is selected, press F5. When the Go to box appears, click on the Special button.
Now you should see the Go To Special box. Click on the Blanks option, and click OK.
You’ll see that the blank rows on your file are selected; press Ctrl and the minus key. A small window will appear with various options; choose the one that’ll allow you to erase the entire row. Click Ok, and you’ll see how the empty rows disappear.
How to Make Excel Cells Number Themselves
You can waste time adding the numbers but save time by making the cells number themselves. For example, if you want the numbers to appear in column A. type the following formula =SEQUENCE(COUNTA.
Once you get here, click on the column with the text you want to number (The letter at the top). Add two closing parenthesis and press Enter.
The Power of Ctrl E
Let’s say that an entire cell has a first and last name. But, you want to put the first and last name in different cells. If you have a short list, you could do it manually, but it can be time-consuming if you have a long list of names. You can do this instead; in the next cell, you can type the first name and press the arrow key to highlight the cell below. Press Ctrl + E. Excel will read the first name of the rest of the cells and paste them into the column where you typed the first name.
How to Add Rows With the Shift Key
If you don’t have a lot of rows to add or only need to add one, you’ll right-click and choose the insert option. But when you need to add various rows, you’ll need to do this. Select the row and press Shift. Place the cursor at the bottom right corner until the cursor turns into arrows pointing in opposite directions. When you see this, drag down until the number of rows you want is highlighted and let go. Voila! You have your new rows.
How to Add Checkboxes to Excel Cells
You made a list of the areas you want to clean in the house. You want to check that area off your list to know what is left. Try adding a checkbox to the area by doing the following. You’ll need to enable the Developer tab in Excel to see the option to add a checkbox. It’s not enabled by default. You can do that by going to File > Options > Customize Ribbon. Check the box for Developer and click OK.
After clicking OK, you should see the new tab appear. Click on the Developer tab, followed by Insert. When the options appear, choose Check Box.
When you click on the box, your cursor will look like a cross. Click on the cell you want the first box to appear, and it’ll be pasted. Before you click anywhere else, click on the text to remove it until you need to add some. If not, remove it and click anywhere else to paste.
Highlight the area where you want to add more boxes, but when you do this, be careful not to include the cell that already has the first box. If you do this, it’s not going to work. Once you’ve highlighted the area, paste, and you should see the new checkboxes appear.
Conclusion
As you can see, Excel is full of great tricks. It takes some time to get to know everything it has to offer. You can start by learning the things you know you’ll need at work and continue from there. Which tip do you think you’re going to use more often? Let me know in the comments below, and don’t forget to share the article with others on social media.
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