Beyond functions and formulas, in Excel it is essential to take advantage of the various keyboard shortcutsAlthough they are numerous, almost infinite, many of the most attractive involve the Ctrl key.What tricks can we recommend with the Ctrl key that are essential for anyone?
If you constantly work with Excel, one of the basic programs of the Office office suite and the most complex, you probably know some other way to save time on spreadsheets so that everything is simpler. But do you know the best keyboard shortcuts with Ctrl in Excel? Can you imagine how many there are in total?
Precisely, the idea of this article is to be able to review many of the most interesting Excel shortcuts, those that you should memorize if you want your tasks to be easier on a daily basisalways thinking about which ones are most useful to you, and as a complement to the functions and formulas of this application.
Essential shortcuts with Ctrl in Excel
So let’s start with the most obvious.to call them in some way, and they are the following:
Ctrl + Z : undo the last action Ctrl + Y : redo the last action Ctrl + C : copy the contents of the cell Ctrl + X : cut the contents of the cell Ctrl + V : paste the contents of the cell
There are some that are a bit more advancedbut still worth remembering:
Ctrl + Delete: delete the text until the end of the line Ctrl + Shift + :: insert the current time Ctrl + Page Down: switch to the left sheet Ctrl + Page Up: switch to the right sheet Ctrl + W: close the sheet Ctrl + O – Open a new Excel workbook Ctrl + S – Save the Excel spreadsheet Ctrl + Spacebar – Select all data in the column Ctrl + Shift + * – Select the entire area around the active cells Ctrl + Key A – Select the entire Excel worksheet Ctrl + Shift + Page Up – Select the current and previous sheet in the same Excel file Ctrl + Shift + Home – Select the first one in the worksheet Ctrl + Shift + End – Select up to the last cell used in the worksheet Ctrl + Shift + Left or Right Arrow – Select or deselect one word to the left or right
Other Excel shortcuts to consider
Ctrl + Home – Move to the first cell in a worksheet Ctrl + End – Move to the last cell containing content in a worksheet Find and Replace Ctrl + G – Display the ‘Go To’ dialog Ctrl + Left or Right Arrow – Within a cell, move to the left or right cell of that cell Ctrl + D – Copy the contents of the cell above Ctrl + R : copy the content of the cell to the leftCtrl + «: copy the content of the cell above and in editing stateCtrl + ‘: copy the content of the cell above and in editing stateCtrl + –: show the delete menu of cell/row/columnCtrl + Shift + +: show the insert cell/row/column menuShift + F2: Insert/Edit a comment cellCtrl + K: insert a linkCtrl + 9: hide the selected row in ExcelCtrl + Shift + 9 – show the hidden row in the selection that contains that rowC trl + 0 – Hides the selected column in Excel Ctrl + Shift + 0 – Shows the hidden column in the selection Ctrl + 1 – Shows the Format dialog Ctrl + B – Apply or cancel bold formatting Ctrl + I – Apply or cancel bold formatting italic Ctrl + U – Applies or cancels an underscore Ctrl + 5 – Applies or cancels strikethrough formatting Ctrl + Shift + $ – Applies currency formatting with two decimals Ctrl + Shift + ~ – Applies general style number formatting
And more Excel shortcuts!
Ctrl + Shift + # – Format date as: day, month, and year Ctrl + Shift + @ – Format time with hours, minutes, and specify AM or PM Ctrl + Shift + ^ – Format scientific number with two decimals Ctrl + A key – Displays the input method after entering the formula name Ctrl + Shift + A – Inserts arguments into the formula after entering the formula name Ctrl + Shift + Enter key – Enters the formula as an array formula Ctrl + Shift + U – Toggles to expand or collapse the formula bar Ctrl + ‘ – Toggles the display of the formula in the cell instead of the value
Conclusions
Undoubtedly, Excel keyboard shortcuts that are executed by embedding the Ctrl key will make your life easier. You have to familiarize yourself with them to not depend so much on the mouse and be a true specialist with this app.
Of course, becoming an expert in one of the most popular programs out there will take some time, but you should be investing it in memorizing these shortcuts and not in repeating long and tedious procedures.
And finally, remember that if you ever can’t edit your Excel documents, it’s probably because you have Protected View turned on, a specific feature to protect the contents of files.
