Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 5, 2025)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Excel in Microsoft 365
If you want to copy the contents of a cell without formatting, you can easily do so by using the Paste Special feature of Excel. Simply follow these steps:
In step 5 you could have chosen one of the Paste Values options, but Excel would not have transferred any formulas. Instead, it would have pasted the results of formulas, as if they were static values. In other words, to truly copy cell contents, you must use the Formulas option.
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (9045) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Excel in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Copying a Cell without Formatting.
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!
When you filter rows in your data, you may want to later number those rows. This tip provides a variety of ways you can ...
Discover MoreNeed to figure out if a cell contains a number so that your formula makes sense? (Perhaps it would return an error if the ...
Discover MoreDo you need to change whether a particular reference in a formula uses a relative or absolute reference? If so, you may ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
2025-07-05 08:26:40
Alex Blakenburg
Typically when you copy cells without formatting you still want dates to be recognisable as dates and numbers especially things like percentages to still be easy to read. The paste special option "and number formats" preserves this type of formatting and is highly under utilised.
There is "Values and number formats" and in this case a "Formulas and number formats" option.
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