Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 2, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021
Ian has a macro in which he needs to select a range of cells, from the fifth row of a column to the last value in the column. There may be blank cells in the range, but Ian needs to select everything through whatever the last-used cell is in the column.
Selecting the last used cell in a column is fairly straightforward—you use the .End method to locate the cell. For instance, you could use the following single line to select the desired range in column A, from A5 (the fifth row, as Ian indicated) through the last-used cell:
Range("A5",Range("A" & Rows.Count).End(xlUp)).Select
The .Count property when used with the Rows collection returns a numeric value for the total number of rows in the worksheet. Taking it one step further and applying the .End method specifies that the returned range should be just the last-used cell in the column.
Note that the macro line assumes you want to select the cells in column A. It is very possible, of course, that you might want to select cells in a different column. The best way to accommodate that is to simply make sure that the "A" portion of the macro is a variable:
sColWanted = "A" Range(sColWanted & "5",Range(sColWanted & Rows.Count).End(xlUp)).SelectYou could even wrap the lines in a subroutine that could then be called from another macro:
Sub SelectCells(sCol As String)
Range(sCol & "5",Range(sCol & Rows.Count).End(xlUp)).Select
End Sub
Note:
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (13818) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021.
Solve Real Business Problems Master business modeling and analysis techniques with Excel and transform data into bottom-line results. This hands-on, scenario-focused guide shows you how to use the latest Excel tools to integrate data from multiple tables. Check out Microsoft Excel Data Analysis and Business Modeling today!
If you need to find out how many columns are set to be a specific width, you'll need a macro to help determine the info. ...
Discover MoreIf you develop macros and edit them quite a bit, you may be running the risk of causing problems with the macros or with ...
Discover MoreWorkbooks can contain macros, or not. It is entirely up to you whether they do or not, but at some future time you might ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
2021-01-03 10:37:41
J. Woolley
There is a typo error in the next-to-last statement of my modified Sub SelectCells(...) below. Although
Range(sCol & "5", Range(sCol & lastRow)).Select
works as intended, it should be written more clearly as
Range(sCol & "5", sCol & lastRow).Select
2021-01-02 10:19:54
J. Woolley
The Tip's final subroutine will not select everything if the column's last-used cell is in a hidden row (by filtering, for example). This modification will:
Sub SelectCells(sCol As String)
lastRow = Columns(sCol).Find(What:="*", _
After:=Columns(sCol).Cells(1), _
LookAt:=xlPart, _
LookIn:=xlFormulas, _
SearchOrder:=xlByRows, _
SearchDirection:=xlPrevious, _
MatchCase:=False).Row
Range(sCol & "5", Range(sCol & lastRow)).Select
End Sub
Got a version of Excel that uses the ribbon interface (Excel 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the menu interface.
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments