Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Excel in Microsoft 365. 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: AutoFilling from a Custom List.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 10, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Excel in Microsoft 365
A great timesaver when entering data is to use Excel's AutoFill feature. To use the feature, enter enough cells that Excel can figure out how you want to fill the remaining cells in a series. For instance, enter 1 and 2 into two cells, or 5 and 10 into two others, or Monday and Tuesday. Select the two cells and then click and drag the Fill handle at the bottom-right corner of the selection border.
As cool as AutoFill is, an even cooler timesaving feature is to define your own series of values that AutoFill can use. Follow these steps:
Figure 1. The Custom Lists dialog box.
You can now use the custom list for the AutoFill feature. Simply type whatever entry from the custom list you want to start with, select the cell, and then drag the Fill handle. Excel fills the selected cells with the items from your custom list, in order.
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (6241) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Excel in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: AutoFilling from a Custom List.
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If you need to fill a number of cells with a specific sequence of characters (such as the alphabet), there are several ...
Discover MoreWant to fill a long column with predictive data? It's easy to do by using AutoFill and a double-click of the mouse.
Discover MoreDon't want people using your workbook to be able to use AutoFill? You can add two quick macros that disable and enable ...
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2021-07-10 17:59:09
Rod Grealish
You can use a custom list for sorting. For instance, if you have an unsorted list of choir members with their voice (Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass) then create a Custom List of voices in the order Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass . Sort the choir members on their voice and the Sopranos will be sorted first, followed by the Altos, then the Tenors and finally the Basses.
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