
A thin line will appear to help guide you before placing the column.
Hold down the Shift button and then pull the column towards its intended destination. Note that depending on your version of Excel and if you are using a Mac, the four arrows may alternatively be a small hand symbol.
Along either edge of the highlighted column, hover your mouse until the cursor changes to four small arrows and click and hold the mouse button. You can also perform this task using just a section of data. First, highlight the column you are moving. This is relatively easy to complete although it may take a couple of attempts before you can do it efficiently. EXCEL DRAG AND DROP COLUMN HOW TO
How to Move Columns in Excel: Drag and DropĪnother efficient method to use when you need to move columns in Excel is to drag and drop. Be mindful that this will alter your sheet in a specific area as opposed to the top to bottom change that occurs in the above examples.
You can also select columns within your spreadsheet and move those as necessary without needing to select the column headers. The cut function is unable to perform this task. If trying to move multiple columns, i.e., Column A and Column D, this will only work with the copy function. Cut, copy, insert and paste can all be used with a single column or a range of columns depending on your needs. Select column B, right-click and choose Paste from the pop-up. Going back to our previous example, here’s how to move columns in Excel when replacing data in one column with data from another. How to Move Columns in Excel: Replace Data in One Column with Data from Another But doing so will replace the old data with the new. You can also use the paste function to place your column in its new location. Note that the insert function will shift your data to the right to make room for the new column. If you cut column D and want it inserted after column A, then you would select column B, right-click and choose Insert Cut Cells from the pop-up. When you are ready to place your column, select the heading of the column to the right of where you want it to go. Copying a selection of information creates a duplicate of that data for you to place elsewhere. When you cut a selection, you are removing it from its original location and placing in another part of your spreadsheet or workbook. Be mindful of the difference between Cut and Copy.
For the move functions, you can use shortcut Control X for cut and Control C for copy. The keyboard shortcut for highlighting an entire column is Control Spacebar.With your mouse hovering over the selected column, right-click and select either Cut or Copy from the menu.To move a single column of data, click the header of the target column. Cut or copy is arguably the most widely used editing function across all platforms.
Understanding how to move columns in Excel with this method is very easy. How to Move Columns in Excel: The Cut or Copy Method You’ll also learn how you can move columns in Excel without losing large swaths of data. We will show you two ways to work with columns in your Excel spreadsheet.
Further, they make moving your info around very easy. They provide the window in which to view, calculate, and organize your information. This especially helps with columns containing large swaths of data.Ĭolumns, rows, and cells are perhaps the three most recognizable features of Excel. Ready to hone your skills in working with Excel spreadsheets for a more organized workflow? Start with learning how to move columns in Excel.