Excel Keyboard Shortcuts:

If you want to excel in the Excel application, you need to learn and start using the keyboard shortcuts. Learning and using keyboard shortcuts will save a lot of time. Every time going to ribbon and finding the required option is time-consuming so every Excel user should learn minimum basic keyboard shortcuts.

In Excel, keyboard shortcuts are accessed using ALT, CTRL, SHIFT, Windows key and Function keys. ALT is the master key on the keyboard which helps you to open the options in the ribbon in a shortcut way. When you press the ALT key in Excel, groups on the ribbon will be highlighted and shows the shortcut key assigned to it.

For Example F for File group and H for Home.

Now you need to press that alphabet to open that group options. If you press H, it is further categorized and shows the shortcut keys to open options on the Homegroup.

Here I’ll list some basic keyboard shortcuts that will be useful for daily use and anyone can learn and practice easily.

Excel Keyboard Shortcuts:

Basic operations:

1. Copy – Ctrl + C
2. Paste – Ctrl + V
3. Cut – Ctrl + X
4. Save – Ctrl + S
5. Save as – F12
6. Undo – Ctrl + Z
7. Redo – Ctrl + Y
8. Print preview – Ctrl + P
9. Edit – F2
10. Delete – DELETE
11. Find – Ctrl + F
12. Go to – Ctrl + G OR F5
13. Replace  – Ctrl + H
14. Select all – Ctrl + A
15. Cancel edit – ESC
16. Select the entire row– Shift + Space
17. Select the entire column – Ctrl + Space
18. New workbook – Ctrl + N
19. Hide columns – Ctrl + 0
20. Unhide columns – Shift + Ctrl + 0
21. Hide rows – Ctrl + 9
22. Unhide rows – Shift + Ctrl + 9
23. Minimize or expand the ribbon – Ctrl + F1
24. Freeze pane – Alt, W, F, F
25. Page Break Preview – Alt, W, I

Formatting:

1. Bold – Ctrl + B
2. Italic – Ctrl + I
3. Underline – Ctrl + U
4. Strikethrough – Ctrl + 5
5. Spellcheck – F7
6. Insert hyperlink – Ctrl + K
7. Format painter – ALT, H, F, P
8. Wrap text– ALT, H, W
9. Merge cell – ALT, H, M, C
10. Unmerge cell – ALT, H, M, U
11. Open format option – Ctrl +!
12. Align text to Top– ALT, H, AT
13. Align text to Center – ALT, H, AC
14. Align text to Middle – ALT, H, AM
15. Align text to bottom – ALT, H, AB
16. Apply percentage format – Ctrl+ Shift + %
17. Apply currency format – Ctrl+ Shift + $
18. Apply date format – Ctrl+ Shift + #
19. Apply time format – Ctrl+ Shift + @
20. Remove Duplicates – Alt, A, M

Options:

1. Open Help – F1
2. Close current workbook – Ctrl+ F4
3. Close all workbooks and exit Excel – Alt  + Shift + F4
4. Alternate between 2 working windows – Ctrl+ F6
5. Open a new macro window – Ctrl+ F11
6. Edit a cell comment –  Shift + F2
7. Remove a cell comment –  Alt, R, D
8. Show all comments –  Alt, R, A
9. Display zoom dialogue box – Alt, W, Q
10. Auto  Sum – Alt + =
11. Insert Function – Shift + F3
12. Add Subtotal – Alt, A, B
13. Group Rows & Columns – Alt, A, G, G
14. Group Rows & Columns – Alt, A, U, U
15. Apply Excel Table to the data – Alt, N, T
16. Insert a Pivot Table – Alt, N, P
17. Insert Current Date – Ctrl + ;
18. Insert Current Time – Ctrl + Shift + :

Navigation:

1. Move to the last cell on the Worksheet – Ctrl + End
2. Move to the beginning of the Worksheet – Ctrl + Home           
3. Extend the selection of cells to the last used cell in the worksheet – Ctrl + Shift + End
4. Move one screen down in the worksheet – Page down
5. Move one screen up in the worksheet – Page up
6. Move to the Next sheet in a workbook – Ctrl + Page down
7. Move to the Previous sheet in a workbook – Ctrl + Page up
8. Move to the right cell in a worksheet – Tab
9. Move to the left cell in a worksheet – Shift + Tab
10. Move to  the edge of the data cell in a row or column – Ctrl + arrow key

Keyboard Shortcuts in Excel from Ctrl + A to Ctrl + Z:

1. Ctrl + A: Select All
   • This shortcut selects all the cells in the current worksheet.

2. Ctrl + B: Bold
   • Applies or removes bold formatting to the selected text or cell contents.

3. Ctrl + C: Copy
   • Copies the selected content or cells to the clipboard.

4. Ctrl + D: Fill Down
   • Copies the contents of the cell directly above the selected cell into the current cell or range.

5. Ctrl + E: Flash Fill
   • Automatically recognizes and fills in values based on patterns in your data.

6. Ctrl + F: Find
   • Opens the “Find and Replace” dialog box for searching specific text or values within the worksheet.

7. Ctrl + G: Go To
   • Opens the “Go To” dialog box, allowing you to navigate to a specific cell or location in the worksheet.

8. Ctrl + H: Replace
   • Opens the “Find and Replace” dialog box for searching and replacing specific text or values within the worksheet.

9. Ctrl + I: Italic
   • Applies or removes italic formatting to the selected text or cell contents.

10. Ctrl + K: Insert Hyperlink
    • Opens the “Insert Hyperlink” dialog box for adding hyperlinks to selected text or cells.

11. Ctrl + L: Create Table
    • Converts a range of cells into a formatted Excel table.

12. Ctrl + N: New Workbook
    • Opens a new, blank Excel workbook.

13. Ctrl + O: Open Workbook
    • Opens an existing Excel workbook.

14. Ctrl + P: Print
    • Opens the “Print” dialog box for printing the current worksheet.

15. Ctrl + Q: Quick Analysis
    • Opens the Quick Analysis tool for quickly formatting, charting, or analyzing selected data.

16. Ctrl + R: Fill Right
    • Copies the contents of the cell immediately to the left of the selected cell into the current cell or range.

17. Ctrl + S: Save
    • Saves the current workbook.

18. Ctrl + T: Create Table
    • Converts a range of cells into a formatted Excel table.

19. Ctrl + U: Underline
    • Applies or removes underlined formatting to the selected text or cell contents.

20. Ctrl + V: Paste
    • Pastes the content from the clipboard into the selected cells.

21. Ctrl + W: Close Workbook
    • Closes the current workbook.

22. Ctrl + X: Cut
    • Cuts the selected content or cells and copies them to the clipboard.

23. Ctrl + Y: Redo
    • Redoes the last undone action.

24. Ctrl + Z: Undo
    • Undoes the last action.

Excel Function Key Shortcuts (F1–F12)

F1: Opens Excel Help.

F2: Edits the active cell. 

F3: Pastes defined names into formulas (if named ranges exist). 

F4: Repeats the last action or toggles absolute/relative references in formulas. 

F5: Opens Go To dialog box to jump to cells or ranges. 

F6: Switches between worksheet, ribbon, task pane, and Zoom controls.

F7: Runs spell check on the worksheet. 

F8: Toggles Extend Selection mode to select ranges with arrow keys. 

F9: Recalculates all formulas in edit mode. 

F10: Activates the menu bar for keyboard navigation (same as pressing Alt).    

F11: Creates a default chart from selected data on a new sheet. 

F12: Opens Save As dialog box to save a new file copy.