Learn how to merge cells in Excel using this guide.
Excel is a staple in most tech stacks but, with so many features, finding the features you need can be a little less than intuitive. If you don’t spend hours using it every day, it’s easy to forget simple tricks, like how to merge cells in Excel. You can also be confused about the implications, for instance, whether your data will get deleted.
If you want to be more productive in Excel, then the following easy steps will help you make an easy-to-read spreadsheet that will present all important data exactly how you would want to see it. You will even learn how to preserve a data merge and restore the merged cells to their original structure if needed.
What does it mean to merge cells in Excel?
This can be very useful when you want to create a label that reaches across more than one column. For instance, merge A1, B1, and C1 all together to get one cell covering those three columns. When combined with freeze panes, merged cells can become especially useful for keeping your worksheets in order.
You can merge cells in Excel at the press of a button, but you might need some additional options depending on your use case. Below are the steps to follow to perform various actions in Excel to make sure you get the results you want.
How to merge two cells in Excel?
Highlight the cells you wish to merge. In the toolbar, click the Merge icon. To avoid centering the merged text, click on the dropdown arrow next to the Merge option & Center option and it will give you more choices for alignment.
How to Merge in Excel Multiple Cells
1. Select the cell where you want the merged data to go. This cell should not be part of your merge selection.
2. In the cell you want your concatenated data to be, enter the concatenate formula. This formula is constructed as =CONCATENATE(A1,” “,B1).
3. Search your worksheet to determine the first and last cells that you would like merged. In the formula, replace A1 with the first cell and B1 with the final cell.
4. When you are ready, hit Enter. You will merge the cells in your formula into the cells you have selected.
How to merge in Excel with a shortcut
There is a helpful keyboard shortcut that may be used to merge and un-merge cells in Excel
Windows
- Merge: Highlight the cells you wish to merge, then press ALT + H + M + M.
- Merge and center: Highlight the cells you would like to merge, then press ALT + H + M + C.
- To merge across, highlight the cells you would like to merge and hit ALT + H + M + A.
- To unmerge, highlight the cells you would like to unmerge and hit ALT + H + M + U.
Mac
To merge, highlight the cells you want to merge and press Command + Option + M.
Again, to unmerge, select the cells you want to unmerge and press Command + Option + M.
How to Unmerge Cells in Excel
You can easily unmerge cells; however, when you unmerge, this action does not restore the contents that were deleted in the merging process. To preserve your data, make sure to follow method two.
To unmerge cells, highlight the cells you want to separate. After that, click on the Merge icon in the toolbar and select Unmerge Cells from the dropdown.
Your cells will be restored to their original formatting but without their original content.
Common mistakes when merging cells in Excel
Knowing how to merge cells in Excel can make all the difference next time you’re putting together a spreadsheet, but make sure you avoid these common mistakes.
- Merging into the wrong cell. Only the data in the left-most cell of your merge selection will be preserved, so make sure you select the cells accordingly to avoid losing important data.
- Trying to merge in Edit mode. If the “Merge & Center” button is grayed out and you cannot click it, one of the cells is likely in Edit mode. Unselect your cells and then press Enter to get out of Edit mode and then try again.
- Attempting to sort a mix of cells. You cannot sort a range that contains both merged and unmerged cells, so keep this in mind before merging cells in your spreadsheet. If the merge causes problems, follow method three to unmerge the cells.
Getting more done in Excel
There are countless spreadsheet programs and data entry tools on the market, but Excel is a common tool used within a variety of industries. Now that you know how to merge cells, what will you do next?
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