We already talked about the hot keys that you must know about if you’re a blogger. Now, let’s turn to the ones that I find myself using constantly in Excel. Of note, there are many, many, many hot keys in Excel, even before you start creating your own, or writing macros that execute on hot keys.
My spouse likes to set one up in Excel that applies a specific style of custom formatting, for example. It’s very handy when you’re constantly working with the same type of data, but in a million different spreadsheets. Click, click, done.
This list here is just the ones that I myself use regularly. I’m also trying to learn some more, as they are so, so efficient. Lately I’ve been learning how to add rows to tables in PowerPoint, Outlook and Word using hot keys. It’s pretty handy for my day-job.
Ctrl + D
This fills a cell with whatever is in the cell above it. Let’s say that the line above says $0.25 and you want this one to say the same thing, then press Ctrl + D. I find it most useful when you are thinking about each line, not necessarily filling a big section with the same value, because there is another way to do which is much faster.
Ctrl + ‘
This fills a cell with whatever is in the VISIBLE cell above it. It works just the same as Ctrl + D, but works in filtered lists. Usually, I am filtering in order to have similar things showing, so this one comes in handy.
Ctrl + R
Just like the last two, this fills a cell with whatever is in the cell to the left. Want to extend your formatting one space over for a new header column? Ctrl + R is your buddy.
Ctrl + Arrow
Use this to jump to the last populated cell in a section. If you want to find out how long a data set is that just dumped from a server, go to a column that has a value in every cell and pop down to the bottom quickly with Ctrl + Down. This jumps to the last cell in a populated area, so if you have stuff in cells A1 through C1, nothing in D1 and stuff in E1 through H1, you’ll end up in C1, not H1 if you press Ctrl + Right.
Ctrl + Shift + Arrow
This jumps around the same way as Ctrl + Arrow, but selects all of the cells. If you want a sum, count and average for a column, row, or grouping, select the whole thing using Ctrl + Shift + Arrow and then look at the bottom right corner of your screen. Fast, fast, fast. And handy.
F2
If you punch F2 while you are in a cell, it will edit the formula in the cell. So? Hitting F2 brings up all of the coloured outlines, so you can see what is what.
Shift F2
This one opens a cell comment to edit, if one is there already, or it adds one and lets you start typing right away.
I am sure that I use more than these on a regular basis, but these ones are my favourite Excel hot keys, for sure. Combine them with some must-know hot keys for bloggers and you are off to the races with a more efficient work day (or work evening!).
Ctrl + ; (Semi-colon) – Enters the current date, not as a formula, but as a constant. It’s really helpful when you have no idea what the date is, or if you’re like me and use a French computer at work and an English setup at home, and can’t remember how the date format is for each language. I think in french it’s DD/MM/YYYY, and in English it’s MM/DD/YYYY – or is it the other way around? Regardless of the date I want to enter, I use this shortcut and then edit it with the date I want.
Ctrl + : (colon) – Enters the current time.
That’s a nice one! I rarely use dates, but I should try to remember it. That’s a good point about the date format flipping due to language (or to continent, Aussie/Brit/NZ vs US/Can).
Oh I like these! Thanks for sharing!
Brandy @ Busted Budget recently posted…Where Were You 10 Years Ago?
Anytime, I have lots more!
If you want to put the same value in all cells going down, you can also drag the filled cell down, and if it has a value, say C1+D1 and you drag it, it will add C2+D2, etc.
Pauline recently posted…Side hustle ideas, part 5
Yup yup! And you can also double click the little black crosshairs and it will fill down as far as the contents of the adjacent cells go.
Enter let’s you put another line it the same cell, rather than have it wrap around.
Never used D R and ‘. I’ll have to try to get into the practice!
debs @ debt debs recently posted…Frugal FinCon Fiesta – Ask me Anything
I learned the fill-related ones when I looked them up after having tasks where I did that a lot. Now I don’t do that as often, but they are hardwired into my brain.
sorry I think that should be alt + enter. I guess I typed it up with the “” symbols (stupidly) and html ignored them.
debs @ debt debs recently posted…Frugal FinCon Fiesta Update & Blogger Awards
Ugh, Excel has the worst keyboard shortcuts. The most awkward one, but also useful, is to navigate between worksheet tabs while in a document. You have to use ctrl+page down/up. It’s super awkward (especially on a laptop) and takes both hands! but sometimes it can save time.
Leslie Beslie recently posted…Exploring the Bronx: Little Italy on Arthur Avenue
I love a lot of the ones in Excel! I’ve never used that with page up and down to switch tabs, but with my work keyboard, it would be easy. Thanks!
Anne recently posted…My Fav Excel Hot Keys