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: Quickly Copying Worksheets.

Quickly Copying Worksheets

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 3, 2020)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Excel in Microsoft 365


4

If you need to make a copy of a worksheet, you probably use the Format tool on the Home tab of the ribbon, in the Cells group. That tool includes the option to move or copy a worksheet. There is a quicker way to make a copy, however. All you need to do is follow these steps:

  1. Select the tab of the worksheet that you want to copy.
  2. Hold down the Ctrl key and use the mouse to drag the worksheet tab left or right. A small plus sign should appear next to the mouse pointer.
  3. Release the mouse button when the pointer is between the tabs where you want the worksheet copy to appear.

That's it! Excel makes an exact copy of the worksheet, depositing it at the point where you released the mouse button.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (11145) 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: Quickly Copying Worksheets.

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

Specifying the Size of Chart Objects

Unhappy with the default size that Excel uses for embedded chart objects? You can't change the size at which they are ...

Discover More

Numbering on New Paragraph Doesn't Work as Expected

The Numbering feature in Word can be a bit tricky to navigate. Sometimes it works as it should, and other times it seems ...

Discover More

Counting Consecutive Negative Numbers

If you have a range of values that can be either positive or negative, you might wonder how to determine the largest ...

Discover More

Program Successfully in Excel! John Walkenbach's name is synonymous with excellence in deciphering complex technical topics. With this comprehensive guide, "Mr. Spreadsheet" shows how to maximize your Excel experience using professional spreadsheet application development tips from his own personal bookshelf. Check out Excel 2013 Power Programming with VBA today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Selecting All Visible Worksheets in a Macro

Do you need your macro to select all the visible worksheets (and just the visible ones)? It's not as easy as it sounds, ...

Discover More

Returning a Worksheet Name

Need to know the name of the current worksheet? You can use the CELL function as the basis for finding this information ...

Discover More

Hiding and Unhiding Worksheets

Worksheets are easily accessible in a workbook, but you may not want them to be so open. You can hide worksheets so they ...

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 nine minus 5?

2021-04-26 10:24:38

B Becker

I have been struggling with getting the page layout (landscape printing) to stay with the new worksheets I create in several workbooks. No matter how I created the new worksheet, it would always default to portrait. This makes an exact copy, including the page layout. Thrilled! Thank you!


2021-02-02 14:33:50

Kit

As usual with Excel, there are many ways to do things. Another is to copy from the tab.
Right click on the tab,
Choose "Move or Copy",
Choose if the copy should remain in this document or go into another book,
Choose in what order the copy should be placed.
Click the "Create a Copy" box, then OK.

Alan way of using the Ctrl and drag is faster if only creating a duplicate and leaving it in the same book. :)


2021-01-09 19:52:52

John Mann

Great. I could have used this tip just the other day, and many times before


2020-10-04 13:11:19

Sameer Usmani

Great tip! Much time saving.


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.