Top 50 Excel Shortcuts Key That You Should Know in 2025

Microsoft Excel remains one of the most powerful tools for organizing, analyzing, and visualizing data, but navigating its vast features with a mouse can be time-consuming. That's where keyboard shortcuts come in. Mastering Excel shortcut keys can significantly boost productivity, reduce repetitive tasks, and streamline workflows.

In this article on Excel shortcuts, we've compiled the top 50 Microsoft Excel shortcut keys that every professional should know. From quick navigation to data manipulation and formatting tricks, these shortcuts will transform how you use this tool. Let’s start!

Overview of Microsoft Excel

Microsoft Excel Scpredsheet

Data in Excel is in the form of rows and columns. Excel is commonly used to record and analyze data, perform mathematical operations, and visualize structured data in charts and graphs. Finally, another important application of Excel is that it helps in automating tasks through excel macros. 

To perform the tasks mentioned above quickly, Excel has a set of shortcuts. Various operations can be achieved with a few simple keyboard strokes. Let’s dive deep into the Excel shortcuts that can help us work better on an Excel spreadsheet.

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What are Excel Shortcuts?

Excel supports a plethora of keyboard shortcuts that help you work efficiently and increase productivity. Instead of accessing the toolbar with a mouse, two or three keystrokes are used to perform significant functions. Isn’t that easier and time-saving? Using Excel shortcuts drastically increases the speed, and thus reduces work-time. 

In this article, we have categorized 50 Excel shortcuts based on their operations. First, we will look at the workbook shortcut keys.

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Workbook Shortcut Keys

In this section, we will understand the basics of operating a workbook. We will learn how to create a new workbook, open an existing workbook, and save a spreadsheet so that you don’t lose any data or calculations that you have done. We will then go through how you can toggle between several different sheets in a workbook. 

Description

Windows Excel Shortcuts 

MacOS Excel Shortcuts

1.

To create a new workbook

Ctrl + N

Cmd + N

2.

To open an existing workbook

Ctrl + O

Cmd + O

3.

To save a workbook/spreadsheet

Ctrl + S

Cmd + S

4.

To close the current workbook

Ctrl + W

Cmd + W

5.

To close Excel

Ctrl + F4

Cmd + Q

6.

To move to the next sheet

Ctrl + PageDown

Fn + Down Arrow

7.

To move to the previous sheet

Ctrl + PageUp

Fn + Up Arrow

8.

To go to the Data tab

Alt + A

Alt + D

9.

To go to the View tab

Alt + W

Alt + W

10.

To go the Formula tab

Alt + M

Cmd + Option + F

Those were the Excel shortcuts that can help you navigate through your spreadsheet. Once the workbook creation is done, the next key step is cell formatting.

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Cell Formatting Shortcut Keys

A cell in Excel holds all the data that you are working on. Several different shortcuts can be applied to a cell, such as editing a cell, aligning cell contents, adding a border to a cell, adding an outline to all the selected cells, and many more. Here is a sneak peek into these Excel shortcuts.

Description

Windows Excel Shortcuts 

MacOS Excel Shortcuts

11.

To edit a cell

F2

Cmd + U

12.

To copy and paste cells

Ctrl + C, Ctrl + V

Cmd + C, Cmd + V

13.

To italicize and make the font bold

Ctrl + I, Ctrl + B

Cmd + I, Cmd + B

14.

To center align cell contents

Alt + H + A + C

Cmd + E

15.

To fill color

Alt + H + H

Cmd + Option + H

16.

To add a border

Alt + H + B

Cmd + Option + 0

17.

To remove outline border

Ctrl + Shift + _

Cmd + Option + Shift + 0

18.

To add an outline to the select cells

Ctrl + Shift + &

Cmd + Option + 0

19.

To move to the next cell

Tab

Tab

20.

To move to the previous cell

Shift + Tab

Shift + Tab

21.

 To select all the cells on the right

Ctrl + Shift + Right arrow

Cmd + Shift + Right Arrow

22.

To select all the cells on the left

Ctrl + Shift + Left Arrow

Cmd + Shift + Left Arrow

23.

To select the column from the selected cell to the end of the table

Ctrl + Shift + Down Arrow

Cmd + Shift + Down Arrow

24.

To select all the cells above the selected cell

Ctrl + Shift + Up Arrow

Cmd + Shift + Up Arrow

25.

To select all the cells below the selected cell

Ctrl + Shift + Down Arrow

Cmd + Shift + Down Arrow

In addition to the above-mentioned cell formatting shortcuts, let’s look at a few more additional and advanced cell formatting Excel shortcuts, that might come handy. 

Other Excel Formulas to Comment and Insert Time, Date and More

We will learn how to add a comment to a cell. Comments are helpful when giving extra information about cell content. We will also learn how to find value and replace it with another value in the spreadsheet. After this, we will look into how to insert the current time, current date, activate a filter, and add a hyperlink to a cell. Finally, we will see how to apply a format to the data in a cell.

Description

Windows Excel Shortcuts 

MacOS Excel Shortcuts

26.

To add a comment to a cell

Shift + F2

Shift + F2

27.

To delete a cell comment

Shift + F10 + D

Cmd + Option + Shift + A

28.

To display find and replace

Ctrl + H

Cmd + F

29.

To activate the filter

Ctrl + Shift + L

Alt + Down Arrow

Cmd + Shift + L

30.

To insert the current date

Ctrl + ;

Cmd + ;

31.

To insert current time

Ctrl + Shift + :

Cmd + Shift + ;

32.

To insert a hyperlink

Ctrl + k

Cmd + K

33.

To apply the currency format

Ctrl + Shift + $

Cmd + Shift + 4

34.

To apply the percent format

Ctrl + Shift + %

Cmd + Shift + %

35.

To go to the “Tell me what you want to do” box

Alt + Q

Cmd + Option + F

After working with cell formatting Excel shortcuts, the next step is to understand how to work with an entire row/column in Excel. 

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Row and Column Formatting Shortcut Keys

In this section, we’ll look at some critical row and column formatting shortcuts.

We will understand how to delete rows and columns, hide and unhide the selected rows and columns, and group and ungroup rows and columns.

Description

Excel Shortcuts 

MacOS Excel Shortcuts

36.

To select the entire row

Shift + Space

Shift + Space

37.

To select the entire column

Ctrl + Space

Cmd + Space

38.

To delete a column

Alt+H+D+C

Cmd + Option + -

39.

To delete a row

Shift + Space, Ctrl + - 

Cmd + Option + -

40.

To hide selected row

Ctrl + 9

Cmd + Option + 9

41.

To unhide selected row

Ctrl + Shift + 9

Cmd + Shift + 9

42.

To hide a selected column

Ctrl + 0

Cmd + Option + 0

43.

To unhide a selected column

Ctrl + Shift + 0

Cmd + Shift + 0

44.

To group rows or columns

Alt + Shift + Right arrow

Cmd + Shift + K

45.

To ungroup rows or columns

Alt + Shift + Left arrow

Cmd + Shift + J

Now that we have looked at the different shortcut keys for formatting cells, rows, and columns, it is time to jump into understanding an advanced topic in Excel, i.e. dealing with pivot tables. Let’s look at the different shortcuts to summarize your data using a pivot table.

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Pivot Table Shortcut Keys

Action

Windows Excel Shortcuts

MacOS Excel Shortcuts

46.

To group pivot table items

Alt + Shift + Right arrow

Cmd + Shift + G

47.

To ungroup pivot table items

Alt + Shift + Left arrow

Cmd + Shift + H

48.

To hide pivot table items

Ctrl + -

Cmd + Option + -

49.

To create a pivot chart on the same sheet

Alt + F1

Alt + F1

50.

To create a pivot chart on a new worksheet

F11

Cmd + Option + F1

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Conclusion

Excel shortcut keys will indeed help you build your reports and analysis faster and better. After reading this article, you would have understood the different types of Excel shortcuts related to the workbook, cell formatting, row and column formatting, and pivot tables. To kick-start your career in the data analysis field, enroll in Post Graduate Program In Data Analytics course today.

Have a look at the video below that explains worksheet-related shortcuts, row and column shortcuts, and pivot table shortcut keys.

Excel Shortcut FAQs

1. What are Excel shortcuts?

Excel shortcuts are keyboard combinations that allow you to perform tasks quickly and efficiently. They can save you a lot of time, especially if you work with large spreadsheets. For example, instead of clicking on the "Bold" button on the toolbar, you can press Ctrl+B to bold a cell.

2. Why are Excel shortcuts important?

Shortcuts are important in Excel because they can help you work more efficiently. By using shortcuts, you can save time and focus on other tasks. They can also help you avoid repetitive strain injuries, as you don't have to use the mouse as much.

3. What are some of the most common Excel shortcuts?

Here are some of the most common Excel shortcuts:

  • Ctrl+C - Copy
  • Ctrl+V - Paste
  • Ctrl+Z - Undo
  • Ctrl+Y - Redo
  • F2 - Edit cell
  • Ctrl+A - Select all
  • Home - Move to the beginning of the worksheet
  • End - Move to the end of the worksheet
  • PgUp - Scroll up one page
  • PgDn - Scroll down one page

4. Where can I find a list of Excel shortcuts?

There are many places where you can find a list of Excel shortcuts. One place is the Excel Help menu. Another place is the Microsoft Office website.

5. How can I create my own Excel shortcuts?

You can create your own Excel shortcuts by going to the File menu and selecting Options. Then, click on the Advanced tab and scroll down to the Keyboard shortcuts section. In this section, you can create new shortcuts by clicking on the New button and entering the shortcut key combination and the command that you want to assign it to.

6. How do I manage shortcuts in Excel?

To manage shortcuts in Excel, you can customize or modify existing shortcuts through the Excel Options menu. Simply go to the "Customize Ribbon" section and click on the "Keyboard Shortcuts" button to assign or change shortcuts according to your preference.

7. How many Excel shortcuts are there?

There are over 270 Excel shortcuts for both the keyboard and mouse, including shortcuts for the Windows, Mac, and Web versions of Excel. These shortcuts can help you navigate, format, and analyze data more efficiently.

8. What is the shortcut to copy selection in Excel?

The shortcut to copy a selection in Excel is Ctrl+C.

9. How can I undo the last action in Excel?

To undo the last action in Excel, you can use the shortcut Ctrl+Z.

10. What is the shortcut to redo the last action in Excel?

The shortcut to redo the last action in Excel is Ctrl+Y.

About the Author

Shruti MShruti M

Shruti is an engineer and a technophile. She works on several trending technologies. Her hobbies include reading, dancing and learning new languages. Currently, she is learning the Japanese language.

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