How to Highlight Cells and Text in Microsoft Excel
Make your important data stand out
By using a bit of color in your spreadsheet, you can make a cell or its contents pop. This makes it easy to spot the data you need at a glance. Here, we’ll show you how to highlight both cells and text in Microsoft Excel.
While you canuse conditional formatting in Excelto automatically highlight cells, you may have data that doesn’t change or simply want to apply a single highlight. In just a few steps you can apply highlighting in Excel.
How to Highlight Cells Using a Fill Color
One of the simplest ways to highlight a cell, or even a range of cells, is by using a fill or background color.
You’ll then see the cell highlighted with your selected color.
If after you highlight a cell, you want to apply the exact same color to another cell or range, you can do sousing the Format Painter.
Note: This action will copy and paste all formatting. This means if you have bold text, for example, that format will be copied and pasted as well.
Follow the same process to copy and paste the cell highlighting to additional cells.
How to Highlight Cells Using a Cell Style
Another way to highlight a cell in Excel is using a Cell Style. You can use a preset style or create a custom style of your own.
Using a preset style, you can apply a cell color with a click. Some options let you format the text at the same time.
You can then use that same style to highlight additional cells the same way.
If you want to create a particular style, like one that uses a custom color, you can set up your own reusable style.
To use your new custom format, choose a cell and open theCell Stylesdrop-down menu on theHometab as described earlier.
You’ll see your new style at the top belowCustom. Choose the style to apply it to the active cell.
You can continue this process to use your custom style across other cells and sheets in your Excel workbook.
How to Highlight Text Within a Cell
Maybe it’s not an entire cell you want to highlight but text within the cell. You canchange the color of all cell contentsor just a portion.
If you want to highlight all text or elements within a cell, this takes only a minute.
You’ll then see the text in your cell highlighted in the color of your choice.
If you only want to highlight specific text like a word, number, or other element in a cell, this is also doable.
Make Your Data Pop
Highlighting in Excel gives you a simple way to make your data stand out. Whether a cell, group of cells, or certain text, set up your worksheet with the most effective way to view your data. And now that you know how to highlight cells, why not learnhow to count colored cells in Excel, as well?
Sandy Writtenhouse is a freelance technology writer and former Project, Department, and Program Manager. She turned her education, job experience, and love of technology into a full-time writing career. With all sorts of gadgets in her home and her hands, she seeks to help others make life easier through technology.Read Sandy’s Full Bio
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