Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. If you are using an earlier version (Excel 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Excel, click here: Drawing Borders.

Drawing Borders

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 10, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021


The normal way to add borders around a cell or range of cells is to select the cell or range, and then use the Border tab of the Format Cells dialog box. There is a quick shortcut you can use to actually "draw" borders around cells.

Start by displaying the Home tab of the ribbon. In the Font group, click the down-arrow at the right of the Border tool. Excel displays a whole range of options; you want to choose Draw Border. Choose this, and the mouse pointer becomes a small pencil. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. Excel allows you to draw borders in a worksheet

Now you can just click and draw borders wherever you want them. The options accessible through the drop-down arrow at the right of the Border tool allow you to specify what type of line you want, along with the line color.

When you are done creating your borders, just press the Esc key. The mouse pointer returns to normal, and you can use Excel like you normally do.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (6231) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Drawing Borders.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Selecting a Table

There are several different ways you can select an entire table in Word. The various methods and shortcuts are described ...

Discover More

Getting Rid of Your Windows 7 Password

When you get rid of your Windows login password, you accomplish two things. First, you make it easier to log onto your ...

Discover More

Turning Off Automatic Sorting in PivotTables

Tired of your data being sorted when you create a PivotTable? Excel allows you to specify how the sorting should occur by ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Formatting for Hundredths of Seconds

When you display a time in a cell, Excel normally displays just the hours, minutes, and seconds. If you want to display ...

Discover More

Automatically Formatting for Decimal Places

Cell contents and cell formatting are, in Excel, largely independent of each other. You can enter something in a cell and ...

Discover More

Preventing Automatic Date Formatting Changes

Excel often changes the formatting of a cell based on how it parses what you are entering into that cell. This is ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is one minus 0?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

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.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.