microsoft excel shortcuts that every accountant should know
I am an accountant and I usually spend a good portion of my workday wrangling and formatting data in Microsoft Excel. The work can be done using my mouse and the Excel ribbon tabs and ribbon menus, but the below shortcuts help to make life easier and to save time.
Things To Note:
- The below shortcuts assume that you are using Microsoft Excel for Windows and a US keyboard layout.
- A plus sign (+) in a given keyboard shortcut means that you will need to press all of the listed keys at the same time.
- A comma sign (,) in a given keyboard shortcut means that you will need to press the listed keys in the sequence shown, but not all at the same time.
IN THIS ARTICLE
- Cut, Copy, Paste All
- Undo, Redo
- Save
- Edit
- Audit
- Paste Special
- Select: Rows and Columns
- Insert: Rows and Columns
- Delete: Rows and Columns
- Hide: Rows and Columns
- Navigate: Cells, Sheets, Tabs and Workbooks
- Find, Replace
- Format: Cells
- Insert: Notes and Comments
1. Cut, Copy, Paste All
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| CTRL + X | Cut or delete a selection of cells, text or other objects from a worksheet, and copy the selection to the clipboard. |
| CTRL + C | Copy selected cells, text or other objects to the clipboard. |
| CTRL + V | Paste the selection that was copied to the clipboard. |
2. Undo, Redo
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| CTRL + Z | Undo the last action. |
| CTRL + Y | Redo the action that was undone, if possible. |
3. Save
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| CTRL + S | Save changes made to an open workbook. |
| F12 | Open the Save As dialog box. |
4. Edit
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| F2 | Edit an active cell and put the insertion point at the end of the cell's contents. |
| F4 | Used on its own: Repeat the last command or action, if possible. Used with a cell reference or cell range selected in a formula: Cycle through all combinations of absolute and relative cell references. |
| ESC | Cancel an entry being made in a cell or formula bar. Close an open menu or submenu, dialog box, or message window. |
| CTRL + D | Fill down. Copy the contents and format of the topmost cell in a selected range into the cells below. |
| CTRL + R | Fill right. Copy the contents and format of the leftmost cell in a selected range into the cells to the right. |
| CTRL + E | Flash Fill. Request that Excel sense the pattern provided in the cell above, and fill the cells below. |
| ALT + ENTER | Start a new line in the active cell. |
| CTRL + ENTER | Fill the selected cell range with the current entry. (Select the cell range first, and then type the data in the first selected cell before pressing this key combination.) |
5. Audit
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| CTRL + ` (single left quotation mark) | Alternate between displaying cell values and displaying formulas. |
| CTRL + [ | Select all direct precedents (all the cell references that appear in a formula in the selected cell). |
| CTRL + SHIFT + [ | Select all precedents (both direct and indirect). |
| CTRL + ] | Select all direct dependents (all the cells that directly reference the selected cell in a formula). |
| CTRL + SHIFT + ] | Select all dependents (both direct and indirect). |
6. Paste Special
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| CTRL + ALT + V , A, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste all copied cell contents and formatting exactly as it was in the source selection. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , F, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste only the copied formulas. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , V, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste only the copied values. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , T, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste only the copied formatting. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , C, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste only the comments and notes attached to the copied cells. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , N, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste only the data validation rules from the copied cells. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , H, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste all copied cell contents and formatting exactly as it was in the source selection. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , X, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste all copied cell contents and formatting except for the cell borders. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , W, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste only the widths of a copied column or range of columns. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , R, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste only the copied formulas and number formats. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , U, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste only the copied values and number formats. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , O, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Paste copied cell contents, formats or formulas as needed, with no operation (without performing a mathematical operation). |
| CTRL + ALT + V , D, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Add the values in the destination cells to the copied values. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , S, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Subtract the values in the destination cells from the copied values. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , M, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Multiply the values in the destination cells by the copied values. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , I, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Divide the values in the destination cells by the copied values. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , B, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Skip blanks when copying. This avoids replacing values in the paste area when there are blank cells in the copy area. |
| CTRL + ALT + V , E, ENTER | Open the Paste Special dialog box. Transpose the content of the copied cells when pasting. Paste row data into columns and vice versa. |
7. Select: Rows and Columns
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| CTRL + A | Select all the cells in the current worksheet |
| CTRL + SPACE | Select an entire column in a worksheet. |
| SHIFT + SPACE | Select an entire row in a worksheet. |
| SHIFT + Arrow Key | Extend a selection of cells in the direction specified by the arrow key. |
| CTRL + SHIFT + Arrow Key | Extend a selection of cells from the active cell to the last non-blank cell in the same row or column depending on which arrow key is pressed. If the next cell is blank, extend the selection to the next nonblank cell. |
| CTRL + SHIFT + HOME | Extend a selection of cells from the active cell to the left and up to the beginning of a worksheet. |
| CTRL + SHIFT + END | Extend a selection of cells from the active cell to the right and down to the last used cell in a worksheet. |
8. Insert: Rows and Columns
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| CTRL + SHIFT + PLUS (+) | Open the Insert dialog box to add blank cells. |
| SHIFT + SPACE, CTRL + SHIFT + PLUS (+) | Select an entire row and insert a new blank row above the selected row. Before using this key combination, navigate to the cell above which you wish to insert a new row. If you have a keyboard with a Number Pad to the right of the regular keyboard, you can use the plus sign (+) from there and thus won't need to press the SHIFT key. |
| ALT, I, R | Insert a new blank row above the selected row. Before using this key combination, navigate to the cell above which you wish to insert the new row. |
| CTRL + SPACE, CTRL + SHIFT + PLUS (+) | Select an entire column and insert a new blank column to the left of the selected column. Before using this key combination, navigate to a cell to the left of which you wish to insert a new column. If you have a keyboard with a Number Pad to the right of the regular keyboard, you can use the plus sign (+) from there and thus won't need to press the SHIFT key. |
| ALT, I, C | Insert a new blank column to the left the selected column. Before using this key combination, navigate to a cell to the left of which you wish to insert a new column. |
Note: To insert multiple rows or columns, select one of the rows or columns that you want to reference for the insert operation, hold down the SHIFT key and use the relevant Arrow Key to select additional rows or columns. Then, once you have selected the desired number of rows or columns, proceed with the insert operation.
9. Delete: Rows and Columns
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| CTRL + MINUS (-) | Open the Delete dialog box to delete selected cells. |
| SHIFT + SPACE, CTRL + MINUS (-) | Select and delete an entire row. Before using this key combination, navigate to the row which you wish to delete. |
| CTRL + SPACE, CTRL + MINUS (-) | Select and delete an entire column. Before using this key combination, navigate to the column which you wish to delete. |
Note: To delete multiple rows or columns, select one of the rows or columns that you want to reference for the delete operation, hold down the SHIFT key and use the relevant Arrow Key to select additional rows or columns. Then, once you have selected the desired number of rows or columns, proceed with the delete operation.
10. Hide: Rows and Columns
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| CTRL + 0 | Hide selected columns. |
| CTRL + 9 | Hide selected rows. |
11. Navigate: Cells, Sheets, Tabs and Workbooks
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| TAB | Complete a cell entry and move one cell to the right of a selected cell, or to the next option in a dialog box. |
| SHIFT + TAB | Complete a cell entry and move one cell to the left of a selected cell, or to the previous option in a dialog box. |
| ENTER | Complete a cell entry and move to the cell below the selected cell. |
| SHIFT + ENTER | Complete a cell entry and move to the cell above the selected cell. |
| CTRL + Arrow Key | Move to the last nonblank cell in the direction of the selected arrow key. |
| CTRL + HOME | Move to the beginning of a worksheet. |
| CTRL + END | Move to the last used cell of the rightmost used column in a worksheet. |
| CTRL + PageUp | Move to the previous worksheet in a workbook (to the left of the current worksheet). |
| CTRL + PageDown | Move to the next worksheet in a workbook (to the right of the current worksheet). |
| ALT + TAB | Move between windows or workbooks. |
| CTRL + G | Go to a specific cell reference. |
12. Find, Replace
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| CTRL + F | Open the Find and Replace dialog box, to search for a specific value in a worksheet. |
| CTRL + H | Open the Find and Replace dialog box, to search for a specific value in a worksheet, and replace it with another value. |
13. Format: Cells
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| CTRL + 1 | Open the Format Cells dialog box. |
| CTRL + SHIFT + 1 (!) | Format numbers with two decimal places. |
| CTRL + SHIFT + 2 (@) | Format cells as time. |
| CTRL + SHIFT + 3 (#) | Format cells as date. |
| CTRL + SHIFT + 4 ($) | Format cells as currency. |
| CTRL + SHIFT + 5 (%) | Format cells as percentage. |
| CTRL + T | Convert selected data cells into a table. |
14. Insert: Notes and Comments
| KEYS TO PRESS | WHAT THE KEYBOARD SHORTCUT DOES |
|---|---|
| SHIFT + F2 | Add a new note to a cell. Open and edit an existing note. |
| CTRL + SHIFT + F2 | Add a new threaded comment to a cell. Open and reply to a threaded comment. |