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: Copying Cells to Fill a Range.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated September 11, 2024)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Excel in Microsoft 365
Excel provides a pair of nifty shortcut keys that can be used to copy cells down and to the right. For instance, let's say you want to copy the contents of cell C3 to the fifteen cells just below it. All you need to do is select the sixteen cells (making sure that cell C3 is the top cell in the selection) and then press Ctrl+D. Cell C3 is copied to all the other cells below it.
Likewise, if you want to copy cells to the right, you can simply make a selection and press Ctrl+R. The value of the left-most cell in the selection will be copied to its right, filling out the selected range.
You can combine these two shortcuts to fill an entire range of cells. Let's say that you have a value in cell C3 and you want it copied to the range C3:M24. All you need to do is select that range and then press Ctrl+D and immediately press Ctrl+R. The first command copies the first row downward, which means that C3:C24 now contains the desired value. When you press Ctrl+R, everything in C3:C24 is copied to the right so that the entire range of C3:M24 is filled.
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (10261) 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: Copying Cells to Fill a Range.
Save Time and Supercharge Excel! Automate virtually any routine task and save yourself hours, days, maybe even weeks. Then, learn how to make Excel do things you thought were simply impossible! Mastering advanced Excel macros has never been easier. Check out Excel 2010 VBA and Macros today!
When you are working with data created by other systems or other people, you often need to convert the data into ...
Discover MoreIf you have a lot of text in your workbook, at some point you might want to split out sentences into individual cells. ...
Discover MoreWant to show a user, in a cell, what you expect their input to look like? Unfortunately, it cannot be done natively in ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
2024-09-11 07:26:50
Alan Cannon
An easier way to fill the range C3:M24 would be to select the range beginning with cell C3, then press F2 to enter edit mode then press Ctrl + Enter.
2024-09-11 06:34:48
Mark E Watson
Hymie - The result of Ctrl-D/Ctrl-R versus the fill square is the same. For me the difference is keyboard versus mouse. I like to think that I'm more productive sticking to keyboard shortcuts, but your mileage may vary ;-)
Alan Cannon - Wow! Now that's a fill technique I don't remember ever hearing! Thanks for sharing.
2021-03-01 10:39:38
Villunia
Just tried this trick and got excited. Thanks!
2021-03-01 09:15:28
Hymie
What is the preference of this method over just grabbing the little square at the bottom right corner and dragging it to the cells you want to copy into?
2021-02-27 08:05:58
Alan Cannon
I often use a different method for copying left, right, up, down, or a combination thereof.
1. Select the range of cells you want filled with the same value, but be sure to click the original cell 1st.
2. Press F2 to enter edit mode, then press Ctrl+Enter together.
This even works if the selected range is blank. Just select the range to be filled, type what you want into the active cell, then press the Ctrl+Enter combination.
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 © 2024 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
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:
Comments