Learning to use keyboard shortcuts in Microsoft Excel and other Office apps is one of the most effective methods to boost your productivity. The list of Excel keyboard shortcuts below is a collection of my personal favorites.
Many users feel that using an extra keyboard with Excel keyboard shortcuts speeds up their work. Keyboard shortcuts can be easier than using the touchscreen for individuals with mobility or vision problems, and they are an essential alternative to using a mouse.
The keyboard shortcuts, function keys, and various other frequent shortcut keys in Excel for Windows are described in this article.
Excel Keyboard Shortcuts: Boost Your Productivity
Shortcuts that are frequently used
The most commonly used Excel shortcuts are included in this table.
| To accomplish this | Press |
| Go to the Formula tab. | Alt+M |
| Delete column. | Alt+H, D, C |
| Hide the selected rows. | Ctrl+9 |
| Hide the selected columns. | Ctrl+0 |
| Add borders. | Alt+H, B |
| Open the context menu. | Shift+F10 or Windows Menu key |
| Go to the View tab. | Alt+W |
| Go to the Data tab. | Alt+A |
| Go to the Page Layout tab. | Alt+P |
| Center align cell contents. | Alt+H, A, C |
| Go to the Insert tab | Alt+N |
| Cut selection. | Ctrl+X |
| Close a workbook. | Ctrl+W |
| Open a workbook | Ctrl+O |
| Go to the Home tab. | Alt+H |
| Save a workbook. | Ctrl+S |
| Copy selection. | Ctrl+C |
| Paste selection. | Ctrl+V |
| Undo recent action. | Ctrl+Z |
| Remove cell contents | Delete |
Keyboard shortcuts for cell navigation
| To accomplish this | Press |
| Move to the previous cell in a worksheet or the previous option in a dialog box. | Shift+Tab |
| Move one cell up in a worksheet. | Up arrow key |
| Move one cell down in a worksheet. | Down arrow key |
| Move one cell left in a worksheet. | Left arrow key |
| Zoom out. | Ctrl+Alt+Minus sign (-) |
| Zoom in. | Ctrl+Alt+Equal sign ( = ) |
| Scroll horizontally. | Ctrl+Shift, then scroll your mouse wheel up to go left, down to go right |
| Exit the floating shape navigation and return to the normal navigation. | Esc |
| Cycle through floating shapes, such as text boxes or images. | Ctrl+Alt+5, then the Tab key repeatedly |
| Open the list of validation choices on a cell that has data validation option applied to it. | Alt+Down arrow key |
| Move to the previous sheet in a workbook. | Ctrl+Page up |
| Move one screen to the left in a worksheet. | Alt+Page up |
| Move one screen to the right in a worksheet. | Alt+Page down |
| Move to the beginning of a worksheet | Ctrl+Home |
| Move to the edge of the current data region in a worksheet. | Ctrl+Arrow key |
| Enter the End mode, move to the next nonblank cell in the same column or row as the active cell, and turn off End mode. If the cells are blank, move to the last cell in the row or column. | End, Arrow key |
| Open the Format Cells dialog box. | Ctrl+1 |
Shortcuts for making selections and performing operations on the keyboard
| To do this | Press |
| Select an entire column in a worksheet. | Ctrl+Spacebar |
| Select an entire row in a worksheet. | Shift+Spacebar |
| Extend the selection of cells to the beginning of the worksheet. | Ctrl+Shift+Home |
| Select the entire worksheet. | Ctrl+A or Ctrl+Shift+Spacebar |
| Select the current and next sheet in a workbook. | Ctrl+Shift+Page down |
| Select the current and previous sheet in a workbook. | Ctrl+Shift+Page up |
| Extend the selection of cells by one cell. | Shift+Arrow key |
| Add a non-adjacent cell or range to a selection of cells by using the arrow keys. | Shift+F8 |
| Fill the selected cell range with the current entry. | Ctrl+Enter |
| Complete a cell entry and select the cell above. | Shift+Enter |
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