Excel like a finance pro.
Copy a sheet properly, between files
Ctrldrag the tabEditing & referencesAnd deal with the links that follow it home.
Difficulty
1What it does
Ctrl-dragging a tab duplicates it where it sits. The Move or Copy dialog does more: it sends the sheet to another open workbook, which is how you extract one schedule to send out. The catch is what travels with it. Any formula that referenced another tab in the original file becomes an EXTERNAL link pointing back at that file — so the copy looks right on your machine and asks the recipient about a workbook they've never seen. Paste values over the formulas before sending, or break the links afterwards.
2The shortcut
- 1
Ctrl + draga tab to duplicate it in the same workbook. - 2To move it elsewhere: right-click the tab → **Move or Copy**, pick the target workbook, tick **Create a copy**.
- 3Then check
Alt + A,K— if links came along, break them or paste values first.
3Before → after
Press the shortcut to play it on a sample sheet.
In the original — a normal cross-tab reference
| A — Line | B — Formula | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Revenue | =PL!B7 |
| 2 | Gross margin | =PL!B9 |
Ctrl + drag duplicates a tab in place. Move or Copy sends it to another workbook — which is where this gets interesting.
4When you use it
- Send one schedule without sending the whole model.
- Duplicate a monthly template for the next period.
- Pull a tab into a new file for an auditor.
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Learn the moves here — or let Wauvel run them on your numbers.
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