This page provides information about entering data into Excel.

Select the cell you want to enter data in, and start typing.  Then lock in entry by

• Pressing the Enter key
• Selecting a different cell with the mouse,
or
• Using the arrow keys on your keyboard to exit the cell.

Excel gives you some visual clues that you're in the process of typing.

If you see these symbols in your formula bar, Excel thinks you're editing.

Entering Words

Just type them.

Don't worry if the cell isn't wide enough to show your entire entry.  It might look cut off, or it might spill over into the adjacent cell.  Your formula bar shows what you've actually typed.

Entering numbers

Type numbers without any dollar signs or commas.

Although Excel is pretty forgiving if you forget, it's a good habit to get into.  Other software programs may not recognize numbers that contain these special characters.  They'll think they're words.

Don't worry if the number appears as a bunch of hashmarks (#):

Excel is saying, "I don't have enough room to show you all of the digits you've requested.  I can't figure out whether to chop off the first or the last.  So I'll show you garbage instead."  You'll widen the column to show all the digits.  Again, your formula bar will show what you've typed.

If it's a very big or very small number, you might see something like this instead

Fixing Mistakes

• Start over while you're editing:  If you realize halfway through that you made a mistake and want to start over, press the Esc key in the upper left corner of your keyboard.  This will take you out of editing mode without locking in your change.

• Correct a few characters:  Press the Backspace key (not the left-arrow key) on your keyboard to wipe out the characters or numbers to the left of your cursor.  Press the Del key to wipe out characters to the right of your cursor.

• Correct an entry after you've locked it in:  Select the cell with the mistake.  To retype it, just start typing.  Excel will start you over.


If you want to correct a few characters, press the F2 key on your keyboard (at the very top), or click in the formula bar where the mistake is:
 
 

• Changing column widths:  As with most things in Excel, there are a number of ways to change a column width.  One is to use the mouse to drag the border where you want it.


Another way is to use the menu. The Format, Column, Autofit selection will increase your column to a width that displays the contents of the active cell.



• Inserting columns and rows:  To insert a blank column in your spreadsheet and adjust all of your formulas, select the column to the right of the one you want.  Then use the Insert, Columns menu item to move everything to the right.

Insert a row by selecting the row below your new one, and use the same menu item, inserting Rows instead.  
• Deleting columns and rows:  To delete a column, select it, then select the menu item, Edit, Delete.

This isn't the same thing as pressing the Del key, and isn't the same thing as using the menu item Edit, Clear.  Use the same process to delete a row after selecting it.  
• Locking in headings:  As your spreadsheets grow, you'll want to see the first row or two whenever you page through your data, preserving their headings.  The same thing happens as you create more and more columns -- you'll want to see a column to show you what's in each row.

Select the cell immediately below the row you want to lock in.  Select the cell immediately to the right of the column you want to lock in.  So for a combination, you'd select cell B2 to lock down row 1 and column A.

Choose the menu item Window, Freeze Panes to lock in the heading.



Choose it again to unfreeze the panes and start over if you need to.

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