Spreadsheets are the lifeblood of any Finance department. Finance teams need to deliver more with less, and “more” often means output that delivers strategic value.21
Why not make it as easy on yourself as possible? Here’s a collection of the best Excel shortcuts – bet you don’t know them all:
- CTRL — Shift & Outline border to the selected cells.
- CTRL Shift # — Change Date format with day, month and year.
- CTRL Shift @ — Change Time format with hour and minute, AM or PM.
- CTRL Shift : — For the current time.
- CTRL ; — For current date.
- CTRL 9 — Hide selected rows.
- CTRL 0 — Hide selected columns.
- CTRL ` — Display Formulas/Alternate in the worksheet.
- CTRL+K — To insert Hyperlink.
- CTRL+H — Opens up the Find and Replace dialog box.
- CTRL+R — Uses the Fill Right command to copy the contents and format of the leftmost cell of a selected range into the cells to the right.
- CTRL+7 — Hides or displays the standard toolbar.
- ALT+F1 — This creates a chart out of the data in the current range (selected cells). This is the most well-known feature of Excel, and now you know a new way to use it!
- ALT+SHIFT+F1 — Inserts a new worksheet into a workbook.
- F6 — Switches between the worksheet, Ribbon, task pane, and Zoom controls. This is probably the most useful shortcut of all. This cool shortcut is also the most beloved to all the anti-mouse users out there.
- SHIFT+F6 — The reverse of the F6 shortcut.
- CTRL+F6 — Switches to the next workbook window when multiple workbook windows are open.
- CTRL+SHIFT+$ — Applies the currency format to the selected cells.
- CTRL+`— Alternates between showing the value of a cell and the formula in the worksheet. Great for complex worksheets.
- CTRL+D — Fill down command on the selected cells. Fill down copies the content and format of the topmost cell into the cells below.
- CTRL+R — Fill right command on the selected cells. Fill right copies the content and format of the leftmost cell to the cells to the right.
It’s worth posting a copy of this list next to every Finance PC. It can save time and frustration.
Any additional shortcuts you’d like to share? Pass them along here.
