Welcome to Editing Spreadsheets. In this section we will cover the following topics:
Select Cells and Ranges
Edit Cell Data
Cut, Copy, and Paste Data
Undo, Redo, and Repeat
Use Paste Special
Insert and Move Cells
Delete Cells
Hide Rows and Columns
Find and Replace Text
Check Spelling
Select Cells and Ranges
Selecting cells is an important skill in Sheets. Almost all of the information in Sheets is saved in a cell or cell range. So, before you can enter, edit, or format text, you first need to know how to select a cell or cell range.
Select a Cell
Click a cell.
Select Cells and Ranges
To see which cell is selected, look at the shaded column number and row letter.
The cell is selected, indicated by the selection border around it.
Select a Row
Now let’s try selecting an entire row.
Click a row header.
Select Cells and Ranges
You can also select multiple rows by selecting a row header, pressing and holding the Shift key, and pressing the Up or Down arrow keys to select additional rows.
All of the cells in that row are selected.
The row’s header is also shaded darker to indicate that the entire row is selected.
Select a Column
You can select columns in the same way that you select rows.
Click and drag column headers to select multiple columns.
Select Cells and Ranges
You can also select multiple columns by selecting a column header, pressing and holding the Shift key, and pressing the Left or Right arrow keys to select additional columns.
Select a Range of Cells
Click and drag cells to select multiple cells.
Select Cells and Ranges
You can also select a cell range by selecting the first cell of the cell range, pressing and holding the Shift key and selecting the last cell of the cell range.
The cell range is selected.
Select All Cells
Click the Select All box.
Press Ctrl + A.
Select Cells and Ranges
The entire sheet is selected.
Edit Cell Data
Cell data is the text or numbers within a cell. When you first start building a spreadsheet, one of the first steps is to enter data in the cells.
Enter Cell Data
Click the cell where you want to add data.
You know the cell is active because a border appears around it.
Type the data and press Enter.
Edit Cell Data
That’s all there is to entering data in a cell.
Replace Cell Data
In addition to adding data in a blank cell, you can also type data into a cell that is already populated.
Click the cell where you want to replace data.
Type the new data and press Enter.
Edit Cell Data
The new information is added in the old data’s place.
Edit Cell Data
Double-click the cell where you want to edit data.
The text cursor appears, and now you can edit the cell’s contents.
Edit the cell contents and press Enter.
Edit Cell Data
The new information is added in the old data’s place.
Clear Cell’s Contents
Select the cell(s) that you want to clear.
Edit Cell Data
Press the Delete key.
The contents are cleared from the cell.
Cut, Copy, and Paste Data
You can move or copy information in a spreadsheet by using the cut or copy button and then pasting the cell data in a new place.
Copy and Paste
Copying and pasting a cell will let you quickly duplicate a cell’s contents into another cell.
Select the cell(s) you want to copy.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Copy.
Press Ctrl + C.
Cut, Copy and Paste Data
Click the cell where you want to paste the data.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Paste.
Press Ctrl + V.
Cut, Copy and Paste Data
The contents of the copied cell are duplicated in the selected cell.
Cut and Paste
Cutting and pasting is almost the same as copying, with the exception being that cutting removes the selected data from the original cell.
Select the cell(s) you want to cut.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Cut.
Press Ctrl + X.
Cut, Copy and Paste Data
The selected cell’s contents are cut. They’re still visible for now but will disappear when pasted into another cell.
Click the cell where you want to paste the data.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Paste
Press Ctrl + V.
Cut, Copy and Paste Data
The cut text disappears from its original cell and is placed in the selected one.
Undo, Redo, and Repeat
You’re going to make mistakes at some point when you’re using Sheets. When this happens, you can use the handy undo command to instantly undo your last action. The related redo and repeat commands are also useful and powerful.
Undo and Redo
To see how they work, you first need an action that you can undo.
Click the Undo button on the toolbar to undo the last action.
Press Ctrl + Z.
Undo, Redo and repeat
Your last action is undone. For example, if you had deleted an item and then decided you wanted to keep it after all, undo would make it reappear.
Click the Redo button on the toolbar to redo the last action.
Press Ctrl + Y.
Undo, Redo and repeat
The last action you undid is redone.
Repeat the Last Action
Select the cell where you want to repeat the last action performed.
Click the Redo button.
Undo, Redo and repeat
The last action is repeated for the selected cell.
Use Paste Special
When you copy cell data, there are many ways it can be pasted. Some examples include:
Transpose Data: Copy columns to rows or vice versa.
Paste Values: Paste the results or values from a formula instead of copying and pasting the formulas themselves.
Paste Formulas: Copy formulas from a cell or cell range and apply it elsewhere.
Paste Formulas
Select a cell that has a formula you want to copy.
If this cell contains a formula and some formatting, both will be copied and pasted by default.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Copy.
Use Paste Special
Select a cell to paste into.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Paste special.
The Paste Special options lets you paste aspects of the copied cell.
Select Paste formula only.
Use Paste Special
The formula is copied to the selected cell.
Paste Values
You can paste only the values as displayed in the cells, instead of the formulas that are used to calculate those values.
With a cell copied, click a cell to paste into.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Paste special.
Use Paste Special
Select Paste values only.
Use Paste Special
Sheets pastes the values of the copied cell into the selected cell.
Transpose Data
You can also transpose data, or paste it so that its data is rotated from its rows and columns.
Select a range of cells.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Copy.
Use Paste Special
Select a cell to paste into.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Paste special.
Select Paste transposed.
Use Paste Special
The cell range you copied earlier is pasted with the rows and columns flipped.
Insert and Move Cells
While working on a spreadsheet, cells themselves may need to be inserted, moved, or deleted. When cells are changed and moved, the existing cells shift, along with their content, to adjust for the changes to adjacent cells.
Insert Cells
First, you’ll want to select the cells next to where you want the new ones.
Select the cell or cell range where you want to insert the new cells.
Click Insert on the menu bar.
Select either Cells and shift down or Cells and shift right.
Insert and Move Cells
Blank cells are inserted and the existing ones move according to your selection.
Insert Rows or Columns
Select the column or row next to where you want to insert new cells.
Click Insert on the menu bar.
Select one of the options:
Column left / Row above
Column right / Row below
Insert and Move Cells
The row or column is inserted. Existing rows are shifted downward, while existing columns are shifted to the right.
Move Cells
Now let’s check out how to move cells to a different area of a spreadsheet.
Select the cell or cell range you want to move.
Move the mouse pointer over the outline of the selected cells.
Click and drag the cells to the new location.
Insert and Move Cells
The cells are moved to the destination you specified.
Delete Cells
If you later decide you no longer need a group of cells, columns, or rows, you can delete them. Deleting a cell differs from clearing a cell’s content, as a “hole” is created by the deleted cell(s) and adjacent cells will move to fill that hole.
Delete Cells
Select the cell or cell range you want to delete.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select a delete option.
Delete values: Deletes the values(s) from a cell or cell range.
Delete row: Deletes the selected row(s).
Delete column: Deletes the selected column(s).
Delete cells and shift up: Deletes the selected cells and shifts the cells below it up.
Delete cells and shift left: Deletes the selected cells and shifts the cells to the right of it to the left.
Delete Cells
The cell(s) are deleted.
You can also delete cells by right-clicking the selected cell(s) and selecting Delete from the contextual menu.
Delete Rows and Columns
Select the row or column you want to delete.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Delete row or Delete column.
Delete Cells
The rows or columns are deleted. Remaining rows are shifted up, while remaining columns are shifted to the left.
Hide Rows and Columns
You can hide rows and columns in a worksheet from view. Data isn’t deleted, but simply hidden until it is unhidden again, which can help you narrow your focus to only on the data needed at the given time.
Hide a Row or Column
You can hide rows and columns in a spreadsheet in order to cut down on visual clutter.
Right-click a row or column header.
Select Hide row or Hide column.
Hide Rows and Columns
The column is hidden from view. Nothing is deleted, and its values can still be referenced by formulas, but it won’t appear on the spreadsheet.
Unhide a Row or Column
When a row or column is hidden, a button with two arrows will appear on the border between the adjacent row or column headers.
Click the (arrows) button between two row or column headers.
Hide Rows and Columns
The data reappears once again.
You can also select multiple row or column headers that contain hidden data, then right-click and select Unhide rows or Unhide columns.
Find and Replace Text
Sometimes you’ll have a word or number you need to find somewhere in your spreadsheet, but you’re not sure where it is. Luckily, you can search a spreadsheet using the Find feature.
Find Text
The Find feature makes it very easy to find specific words and values in a spreadsheet.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Find and Replace.
Find and Replace Text
Press Ctrl + F.
Enter a search phrase in the Find field.
Click Find.
The first instance of the search phrase is selected.
Click Find again to highlight the next instance and continue moving through the spreadsheet.
Click Done when you’re finished.
Find and Replace Text
Find and Replace Text
If you have a word that appears throughout a spreadsheet that needs to be replaced, you don’t have to go cell-by-cell updating it.
Click Edit on the menu bar.
Select Find and Replace.
Find and Replace Text
Press Ctrl + H.
Enter a search phrase in the Find field.
Enter a replacement phrase in the Replace with field.
(Optional) Customize search settings.
Here, you can choose which sheets to search in your spreadsheet.
Other options include matching the case of a search, or matching the entire contents of a cell.
Click Find.
Find and Replace Text
Click Replace or Replace all.
Click Done.
Find and Replace Text
Check Spelling
Spelling mistakes are embarrassing! So after you’ve populated a spreadsheet, it’s always a good idea to check for mistakes.
Check Spelling
Click Tools on the menu bar.
Select Spelling.
Select Spell check.
Check spelling
The mistakes come up one by one.
Click Ignore, or click the Ignore button menu arrow and select Ignore all to ignore instances of the misspelled word.
Click Add to Dictionary to add the word to the dictionary.
Click Change to replace the misspelling with the selected word.
Click the close button to stop spell check.
Check spelling