In Excel, every workbook is different.
That means you may want to modify certain things—like the size and layout of your
cells—to better fit the data you're working with.
This column has been resized, for example, but not quite enough—most of the text is
still getting cut off.
I'm going to increase the width a little more by positioning my mouse over the line in the
column heading, then clicking and dragging it to the right.
Another option is to auto-size the column.
This will automatically adjust the width, so it fits the contents of the cells exactly.
Just double-click the line instead of dragging it.
Now the column is perfectly sized to the text.
Rows work the same way.
You can adjust them manually, or auto-size them to fit the height of your text.
Sometimes it's useful to be able to resize all of your cells at once.
In this example, I'd like to make all of my rows the exact same height.
To do this, click the Select All button in the top left corner.
Then resize a row (it doesn't matter which one)… and the change will be applied to
the entire worksheet.
Next I need to add another row to this list.
I'd like to put it in between row 4 and row 5.
To add a new row, all you have to do is select the row heading below where you want the new
one to appear.
Then click the Insert command.
The process is similar for inserting a new column.
Just select the column heading to the right of where you want the new one to go.
Click the Insert command… and a column will appear to the left.
Deleting columns and rows is just as easy.
First, select the column or row you want to delete… then click the Delete command.
The column or row will be deleted, causing the other cells to move and fill in the gap
automatically.
Just remember that there's a difference between clearing and deleting: deleting cells removes
them from your worksheet; clearing just removes the contents.
You can also move a column or row to a different location.
In this example, we'll move a column.
All you have to do is select the one you want, then click the Cut command.
Next, select the column to the right of where you want the column to be moved.
Click the Insert drop-down menu on the ribbon… then choose Insert Cut Cells.
Another useful technique for rearranging data is the ability to hide certain columns or
rows.
For example, I don't really need to see these three columns right now; I'd rather focus
on the customers' email addresses.
If we right-click… then choose Hide from the menu… the columns temporarily disappear.
To unhide them, select the columns on either side of the ones that are hidden… then right-click
again… and choose Unhide.
Let's fast forward to the finished worksheet.
Next I'd like to take a look at wrapping text, which is one way of addressing cells that
contain more text than they can actually display.
For example, I'd like to resize my column of addresses to about half its current size,
but still be able to see the contents.
We can do this using the Wrap Text command on the ribbon.
As you can see, this displays the text on multiple lines.
Now for the finishing touch—combining the cells in the top row, so the title of my worksheet
can be centered in a single large cell.
To do this, select the cells you want to merge… then click the Merge & Center command.
There, that's perfect.
To access more merge options, open the drop-down menu here.
You can merge across, creating merged rows instead of a single large cell (if you have
multiple cells selected).
You can also merge without centering, or split your cells up again.
The best way to learn about merging cells, wrapping text, and working with columns and
rows is to practice.
So the next time you're using Excel, look for ways that you can customize your worksheet
to better fit your data.