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If you have a firm understanding of basic Excel, this can make a huge difference to your ability to get the most out of Excel functions and formulas.

Therefore, this section of the ExcelFunctions.net website has been set up to guide you through some of the Excel basics that you are likely to make use of when using functions and formulas in Excel. Click on the links below or select one of the options from the "Quick Selection" menu on the right.

This page attempts to cover most of the useful basics of Excel, but if you are a complete beginner, you might benefit from this free Basic Excel Tutorial by Brad James (link opens in a new window).


Excel Data Input

It may seem the most basic Excel imaginable, but there are several ways to populate your Excel spreadsheet, and, a knowledge of these methods will enable most people to work much more efficiently when creating and populating spreadsheets.


EXCEL DATA INPUT
EXCEL AUTOFILL
INPUTTING EXCEL FUNCTIONS
EXCEL COPY & PASTE


Keyboard Shortcuts

It really is worth spending a little time learning the Excel Keyboard Shortcuts for the actions that you perform most frequently Excel. - You will find that the time invested in learning these shortcuts will be repaid many times over.

COMMON EXCEL KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS


Cell References

An understanding of absolute and relative cell references will make life much easier when you are copying formulas between cells. Click on the link below for details.

EXCEL CELL REFERENCES
EXCEL REFERENCES STYLES


Excel Dates and Times

Did you know that Excel stores Dates & Times as numbers? If you understand how this works, you can work much more effectively when using Dates & Times in Excel. Click below for more details:

EXCEL DATES & TIMES
HOW TO SUBTRACT DATES IN EXCEL
HOW TO SUBTRACT TIME IN EXCEL


Excel View

You are able to change the view of your spreadsheet, by zooming in or out, showing formulas, etc. These are the options that are generally used to alter the way you view the spreadsheet electronically. Some of the more popular options are listed below.

EXCEL ZOOM
SHOW FORMULAS
HIDE GRIDLINES


Formatting

Although it may initially appear to be only useful for making spreadsheets look pretty, Excel formatting is actually one of the most important basic Excel features.

In addition to making your spreadsheet look professional and smart, the formatting of data in Excel can also contribute to the interpretation of data. The wrong formatting can sometimes result in results being read incorrectly and may give the impression that your function has failed to evaluate correctly. Click on the links below for more details.

BASIC FORMATTING
EXCEL CUSTOM NUMBER FORMATTING
MERGE CELLS
WRAP TEXT IN EXCEL
CONDITIONAL FORMATTING


Excel Hyperlinks

The correct use of hyperlinks can turn a simple worksheet into a complete record-keeping system, which looks professional and is easy to use. Click on the headings below for details.

CREATE A HYPERLINK IN EXCEL
REMOVE HYPERLINKS IN EXCEL


Excel Filtering

One of the basic Excel requirements anyone who is working with large amounts of data is the Excel filter. In fact, once you learn how to use Filters in Excel, you will wonder how you ever coped without them. Click on the links below for a explanation.

EXCEL AUTOFILTER (BASIC FILTER)
EXCEL ADVANCED FILTER


Pivot Tables

Learn how to use Excel Pivot Tables to quickly and easily analyse large amounts of data.

EXCEL PIVOT TABLES - (Basic Introduction)


Data Validation

If other users input data to your spreadsheet, you may want to limit the types of data that are entered into specific cells. One way to do this is to present a drop-down menu to the user, so that they can select one of a list of possible values. Click on the following link for instructions on how to implement this in your spreadsheet.

CREATE A DROP DOWN LIST


Saving To Other File Formats

Excel 2007 allows you produce a PDF version of your Excel spreadsheet, using a free add-in. Click the link below for details.

CONVERT EXCEL TO PDF


We are continually adding to the above list of Excel Basics, so please check back here regularly for the latest posts.