Excel Shortcuts for Financial Modeling
March 10, 2014
Why Learn Excel Shortcuts?
We know better than anyone that being in finance, whether that’s investment banking, wealth management, private equity or in the corporate sector, involves lengthy stints working solely in Excel. So, how can you make this process easier for yourself? Simple. Learn as many Excel shortcuts as you can. They’ll help you to navigate quickly around, and make the system actually work for you. This is why we believe mastering Excel is the first step to ‘excelling’ at financial modeling. Gone are the days of clicking the mouse and hoping for the best; it’s time to kick your keyboard into action and utilize specific key combinations to your advantage.
While you’ll find lots of shortcuts and cheats all over the internet, it can be hard to know what’s really worth learning – there’s a whole load of jargon out there, trust us. Who wants to learn 50 shortcuts off by heart, let alone “100 of the best”? This is why our industry experts have pulled together a definitive list of their favorites, guaranteed to increase your productivity and make for a fluid workflow.
70+ Printable Excel Shortcuts for Financial Modeling – Mac & Windows
| Shortcut Name | Windows Keys | Mac Keys |
| Open the options window | Alt > F > T | ⌘ , |
| Select column | Ctrl Space | ⌘ [space] |
| Select row | Shift Space | Shift Space |
| Insert selected column or row | Ctrl + | Control Shift + |
| Delete selected column or row | Ctrl – | ⌘ – |
| Move between cells | Arrows | Arrows |
| Screen up | PgUp | Fn ⇧ |
| Screen down | PgDn | Fn ⇩ |
| Previous sheet | Ctrl PgUp | Fn Option ⇧ |
| Next sheet | Ctrl PgDn | Fn Option ⇩ |
| Screen jump left | Alt PgUp | Fn Option ⇦ |
| Screen jump right | Alt PgDn | Fn Option ⇨ |
| Go to cell A1 | Ctrl Home | Fn Ctrl Left |
| Go to beginning of row | Home | Fn Left |
| Jump a contiguous block in arrow
direction |
Ctrl | |
| Select column | Ctrl Space | Ctrl Space |
| Select row | Shift Space | Shift Space |
| Select all to the last cell used in the
sheet |
Ctrl Shift End | Ctrl Shift End |
| Select all to the last cell used in the
row/column |
Ctrl Arrow | Ctrl Arrow |
| Expand formula bar | Ctrl ⇧ U | Ctrl Shift U |
| Quick access tool bar | ⌘ Option Tab |
Paste Shortcuts
| Shortcut Name | Windows Keys | Mac Keys |
| Paste Special formats | Ctrl Alt V t | Ctrl ⌘ V t |
| Paste Special values | Ctrl Alt V v | Ctrl ⌘ V v |
| Paste Special formulas | Ctrl Alt V f | Ctrl ⌘ V f |
| Paste Special comments | Ctrl Alt V c | Ctrl ⌘ V c |
Clear Shortcuts
| Shortcut Name | Windows Keys | Mac Keys |
| Clear cell data | Delete | Delete |
| Clear cell formats | Alt h e f | |
| Clear cell comments | Alt h e m | |
| Clear all (data, formats,
comments) |
Alt h e a |
Data
| Shortcut Name | Windows Keys | Mac Keys |
| Toggle filters | Ctrl Shift L | ⌘ ⇧ F |
| Insert sheet | Shift F11 | Shift fn F11 |
| Delete sheet | Alt > E > L | |
| Delete character to left | Backspace | Delete |
| Delete character to right | Delete | Fn Delete |
| Search | Ctrl F | ⌘ |
| Replace | Ctrl H | ⌘ Shift H |
| Add decimal place | Alt > H > 0 | |
| Remove decimal place | Alt > H > 9 | |
| Add a non-adjacent cell or range to a selection of cells by using the
arrow keys |
Shift F8 | |
| Enter multiple lines in a cell | Alt Enter | Control ⌘ Enter |
| Fill down | Ctrl D | Ctrl D |
| Fill right | Ctrl R | Ctrl R |
| Show all constants | F5 Alt s o | |
| Highlight cells with comments | F5 Alt s c |
View
| Shortcut Name | Windows Keys | Mac Keys |
| Normal view | Alt > W > L | |
| Page break preview | Alt > W > I | |
| Toggle freeze panes | Alt > W > F > F | |
| Select zoom level | Alt > W > Q | |
| Zoom to 100% | Alt > W > J | |
| Jump to active cell if off-screen | Ctrl Backspace |
Formulas
| Shortcut Name | Windows Keys | Mac Keys |
| Toggle reveal formulas | Alt > M > H | |
| Accept function with
AutoComplete |
Tab | ⇩ Tab |
| Toggle large formula bar | Ctrl Shift U | Control Shift U |
| AutoSum (checks for values above
then left) |
Alt = | ⌘ Shift T |
| Enter date | Ctrl ; | Ctrl ; |
| Enter time | Ctrl Shift : | Ctrl Shift : |
Formatting
| Shortcut Name | Windows Keys | Mac Keys |
| Bold | Ctrl B | ⌘ B |
| Italic | Ctrl I | ⌘ I |
| Underline | Ctrl U | ⌘ U |
| Open format cells dialogue box | Ctrl 1 | ⌘ 1 |
| Open cell styles /styles pane | Alt H J | ⌘ ⇧ L |
| Open fill color dialogue box | Alt H H | |
| Open font color dialogue box | Alt H F C | |
| Access font size field | Alt H F C | |
| Access font field | Alt H F S | |
| Align left | Alt H A L | ⌘ ⇧ L |
| Align center | Alt H A C | ⌘ ⇧ E |
| Align right | Alt H A R | ⌘ ⇧ R |
| Strikethrough text | Ctrl 5 | ⌘ ⇧ X |
| Hide or unhide rows | Ctrl ⇧ 9 | ⌘ ⇧ 9 |
| Hide of unhide columns | Ctrl ⇧ 0 | ⌘ ⇧ 0 |
F Keys
| Shortcut Name | Windows Keys | Mac Keys |
| Help | F1 | ⌘ / |
| Go To | F5 | Fn F5 |
| Calculate workbook | F9 | Fn F9 |
| Add/edit comment | Shift F2 | Fn Shift F2 |
| Edit active cell | F2 | Control U |
| Cycle backwards through panes | Shift F6 | Fn F6 |
| Show context menu | Shift F10 | ⇧ F10 |
| Show key tips | F10 | |
| Paste Name | F13 | Fn ⇧ F3 |
| Check spelling | F7 | Fn F7 |
| Create chart sheet for selection | F11 | Fn F11 |
| Cycle cell reference | F4 | ⌘ T |
| Toggle extend mode | F8 | Fn F8 |
| Save as | F12 | ⌘ Shift S |