Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 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: Using the Fill Handle from the Keyboard.

Using the Fill Handle from the Keyboard

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated March 11, 2023)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365

1

The fill handle is very helpful for filling cells with various values. Select some cells, click the fill handle, and drag it to fill cells in a variety of ways. If you hate to use the mouse (or at least want to minimize your use of the mouse), you may long for a way to utilize the fill handle by only using the keyboard.

The easiest way to do this is to display the Series dialog box by using these steps:

  1. Use the keyboard to select the cells on which you want the fill based.
  2. Hold down the Alt key as you press, in turn, E, I, S. Excel displays the Series dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

    3. Figure 1. The Series dialog box.

  3. Use the Tab key to move from option to option within the dialog box.
  4. When you've chosen the option you want, press Enter to select it.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (12045) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Using the Fill Handle from the Keyboard.

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

Using AutoText and AutoCorrect Effectively

AutoText and AutoCorrect are closely related tools that can help you improve the productivity of your typing. This tip ...

Discover More

Understanding ASCII and ANSI Characters

Two of the most common character coding schemes used in computers go by the acronyms ASCII and ANSI. This tip explains a ...

Discover More

Finding Missing Spaces before Numbers

If you want to insert a space between letters and digits in your document, you have a couple of tasks to perform. First, ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 365 applications with VBA programming. Written in clear terms and understandable language, the book includes systematic tutorials and contains both intermediate and advanced content for experienced VB developers. Designed to be comprehensive, the book addresses not just one Office application, but the entire Office suite. Check out Mastering VBA for Microsoft Office 365 today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Counting Words

Do you need to know how many words are in a range of cells? Excel provides no intrinsic way to count the words, but you ...

Discover More

Controlling Formula Reference Jumping

When you select a cell, you typically do so to see what the cell contains to to make changes to the cell. How Excel ...

Discover More

Displaying a Hidden First Row

If you hide the first rows of a worksheet, you may have a hard time getting those rows visible again. Here's a simple way ...

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.

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

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 7 + 8?

2023-03-11 07:22:20

Alex Blakenburg

While I prefer Alt E I S as being shorter. That is the key sequence based on the Old 2003 and prior menus. Excel will give you more help if you use the new menu path which is Alt H FI S
Using the new menu key sequence, excel will display the next keys to apply along the way.

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.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.