Top 20 Google Sheets Shortcuts

In this article, you're going to learn about the most commonly used Google Sheets shortcuts for saving your time.
Why use Google Sheets Shortcuts
Google Sheets provides a number of shortcuts for our ease. You'll be surprised to learn that many of the tasks we do on a daily basis can be sped up by using keyboard shortcuts. This article is best suited for those who are migrating from Windows to Mac or from Mac to Windows because it covers shortcuts in both Mac and Windows. The article will help you get acquainted with some top Google Sheets Shortcuts which are used most frequently.
1. Jump to the Last Cell with Data in a Column
- Let’s say you are working with a large dataset and you want to jump to the last row or the last cell containing data in a column. You can easily perform this task by using the following shortcut:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Jump to the last cell with data |
Ctrl + ↓ |
⌘ + ↓ |
2. Select Entire Selected Row or Column
- Let’s say you are working with a large dataset and you want to select a specific row or a column, of a selected cell. Instead of manually selecting, Google Sheets provides the following shortcut for ease of operation:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Select Entire Row |
Ctrl + Shift + → |
⌘ + Shift + → |
Select Entire Column |
Ctrl + Shift + ↓ |
⌘ + Shift + ↓ |
3. Paste Only Values Or Paste Only Format
- While working on Google Sheets, you want to extract numbers or text from cells only, without formulas and formatting.
- Google Sheets provides a shortcut with which you can only paste values, without changing the formatting in the cell.
- Similarly, if you want to just extract formatting without values, Google Sheets provides a shortcut wherein you can only paste the format, without changing the values in the cell.
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Paste Only Values |
Ctrl + Shift + V |
⌘ + Shift + V |
Paste Only Format |
Ctrl + ALT + V |
⌘ + ALT + V |
4. Insert Rows or Columns
- While working on Google Sheets, you might want to insert a row above or below the currently selected row.
- Similarly, you might want to add a column left or right of the currently selected column.
- Google Sheets provides keyboard shortcuts for all these functions:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Insert Row Above |
Alt+I, then R (Chrome) or Alt+Shift+I, then R (Other browsers) |
control+option+I, then R |
Insert Row Below |
Alt+I, then W (Chrome) or Alt+Shift+I, then W (Other browsers) |
control+option+I, then W |
Insert Column to Left |
Alt+I, then C (Chrome) or Alt+Shift+I, then C (Other browsers) |
control+option+I, then C |
Insert Column to Right |
Alt+I, then O (Chrome) or Alt+Shift+I, then O (Other browsers): |
control+option+I, then O |
5. Select Entire Row or Column
- If you want to select the entire row or column that you are working on, irrespective of whether cells contain any data or not, use the following shortcut:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Select Entire Row |
Shift + Space |
Shift + Space |
Select Entire Column |
Ctrl + Space |
⌘ + Space |
6. Fill Down or Fill Right Value or Formula
- While working on Google Sheets, you might want to use the value or formula used in a cell, in a cell below or right to it.
- Instead of manually copy-pasting it every time, Google Sheets provides the following keyboard shortcuts:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Fill Down |
Ctrl + D |
⌘ + D |
Fill Right |
Ctrl + R |
⌘ + R |
7. Delete Rows or Columns
- While working on Google Sheets, you might want to delete rows or columns which are unnecessary in the dataset.
- Instead of manually selecting the entire row or column and deleting it, use:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Delete Rows |
Alt + E, then D (Chrome) or Alt + Shift + E, then D |
control + option + E, then D |
Delete Columns |
Alt + E, then E (Chrome) or Alt + Shift + E, then E |
control + option + E, then E |
8. Clear Formatting in Cells
- You might want to have different formatting for different cells in a row or column. To remove the existing formatting, use the following shortcut:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Clear Formatting |
Ctrl + \ |
⌘ + \ |
9. Navigate through Sheets using Google Sheets Shortcuts
- While working on Google Sheets, there are high chances that you would be working on multiple sheets of a workbook.
- Since you cannot have a view of multiple sheets in a single frame, you would usually navigate through sheets. Instead of manually doing it, use the following shortcuts:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Move to the next sheet |
Alt +↓ |
option + ↓ |
Move to the previous sheet |
Alt + ↑ |
option + ↑ |
10. Changing between Absolute, Relative and Mixed Cell References
- While using formulas in Google Sheets, you might want different cell referencing for different cells.
- If you copy the cell value and paste it to another cell, the referencing will also be copied.
- To change the cell referencing, use the following shortcut:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Changing Cell Reference |
F4 |
fn + F4 |
11. Open drop-down menu on filtered cell
- If you want to filter your dataset based on specific columns, you can use the Filter option provided by Google Sheets.
- You can filter the dataset based on multiple values, mentioned in the drop-down menu of the Filter option.
- Instead of manually looking for the filter option, you can use the following shortcut to open the drop-down menu on the filtered cell and change the criteria
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Open drop-down menu on filtered cell |
Ctrl + Alt + R |
control + ⌘ + R |
12. Display all formulas used in Google Sheets Shortcuts
- While working on Google Sheets, you would use multiple formulas for performing various operations.
- It would be a tedious task to manually select each cell to view the formula used on it.
- To simplify this process, you can use the following shortcut to display all formulas used in the sheet:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Display all formulas used |
Ctrl + ~ |
control + ~ |
13. Display All Sheets in the Google Sheets Shortcuts
- While working on Google Sheets, you might have a particular workbook containing a lot of worksheets.
- Since you cannot view all of them at once, you can use the following Google Sheet shortcut to have a list of all the sheets inside the workbook.
- You can select the sheet you want to work on directly by clicking on the sheet from the list.
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Display all formulas used |
Alt + Shift + K |
option + shift + K |
14. Hide Rows or Columns
- If you have a particular column or row, which you do not want to have in your view, you can hide it.
- By doing so, you can keep only those columns or rows you want to be displayed.
- You can unhide them anytime to have the original view.
- The following shortcut helps you in hiding columns or rows.
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Hide Row |
Ctrl + Alt + 9 |
⌘ + option + 9 |
Hide Column |
Ctrl + Alt + 0 |
⌘ + option + 0 |
Unhide Row |
Ctrl + Shift + 9 |
⌘ + Shift + 9 |
Unhide Column |
Ctrl + Shift + 0 |
⌘ + Shift + 0 |
15. Insert Date and Time Shortcuts In Google Sheets Shortcuts
- If you feel the need of adding the current date or current time to a cell, you can use the following shortcut:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Insert Current Date |
Ctrl + ; |
⌘ + 0 |
Insert Current Time |
Ctrl + Shift + ; |
⌘ + Shift + ; |
16. Cell Alignment Shortcut In Google Sheets Shortcuts
- If you input any data in a cell, it generally is left aligned.
- You can change the alignment of data to left, right or centre in Google Sheets.
- To save your time, there are keyboard shortcuts for these operations, as shown below:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Left Align |
Ctrl + Shift + L |
⌘ + Shift + L |
Centre Align |
Ctrl + Shift + E |
⌘ + Shift + E |
Right Align |
Ctrl + Shift + R |
⌘ + Shift + R |
17. Scroll to Active Cell
- While working on Google Sheets, there might be a time while scrolling down, that you would want to scroll back to the active cell ( i.e. selected cell)
- However, if the dataset is huge, scrolling up or down to the active cell would take some time.
- To save your time, use the following shortcut:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Scroll to Active Cell |
Ctrl + Backspace |
⌘ + delete |
18. Formatting the Text (Bold, Underline and Italic)
- If you want to change the formatting of text in a cell or a column, i.e. make the text Bold, or Underline or make it Italic, Google sheets provide the following shortcuts:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Bold |
Ctrl + B |
⌘ + B |
Underline |
Ctrl + U |
⌘ + U |
Italic |
Ctrl + I |
⌘ + I |
19. Apply Borders in Google Sheets Shortcuts
- If you want to apply borders to a particular cell, without using menu options, use the following shortcuts to speed the process:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Apply Top Border |
Alt + Shift + 1 |
option + shift + 1 |
Apply Right Border |
Alt + Shift + 2 |
option + shift + 2 |
Apply Bottom Border |
Alt + Shift + 3 |
option + shift + 3 |
Apply Left Border |
Alt + Shift + 4 |
option + shift + 4 |
20. Format Numbers in Google Sheets Shortcuts
- If you want to format numbers in a cell, i.e. as decimal, or time or currency, use the following shortcuts:
In PC (Windows) |
In Mac |
|
Format as Decimal |
Ctrl + Shift + 1 |
control + shift + 1 |
Format as Time |
Ctrl + Shift + 2 |
control + shift + 2 |
Format as Date |
Ctrl + Shift + 3 |
control + shift + 3 |
Format as Currency |
Ctrl + Shift + 4 |
control + shift + 4 |
Format as Percentage |
Ctrl + Shift + 5 |
control + shift + 5 |
Format as Exponent |
Ctrl + Shift + 6 |
control + shift + 6 |