Excel like a finance pro.
Selection shortcut
Select the current region, then the whole sheet on a second press
Ctrl + A on Windows, ⌘ + A on Mac.
When to use it
Selects the current region around the active cell, and the whole sheet on a second press. Inside a Table it selects the Table data, then the Table with headers, then the sheet.
The shape of it
- Windows
Ctrl + A
- Mac
⌘ + A
Worked examples
Select a block
Click inside a data block, press Ctrl + A → The block bounded by blank rows and columns is selected
The usual way to grab a table for a pivot or a sort.
Select everything
Ctrl + A twice → The whole sheet
For sheet-wide formatting or copying.
Inside a Table
In a Table, Ctrl + A → The Table body; again adds the header row
Three levels.
Worth knowing
- Ctrl + Shift + * selects the current region without the second-press behavior.
- In a dialog or the formula bar, Ctrl + A selects all text.
- Check the Name Box to see how big the selection is.
Where it goes wrong
- A blank row inside the data splits the region and Ctrl + A stops short.
- Whole-sheet selection then Delete wipes everything; Undo is your friend.
Related
Learn the moves here — or let Wauvel run them on your numbers.
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