Entering and Editing Data
How to type, edit, and correct data in a worksheet without making a mess of it.
Compatibility: All Excel versions
What You'll Learn
- How to enter and confirm data in a cell
- How to edit a cell without replacing it entirely
- Why Excel sometimes turns numbers into dates
- How to use AutoFill to save time
Click a cell and start typing to enter data — text, numbers, or dates. Press Enter to confirm and move down one row, or Tab to confirm and move one column right.
Editing an Existing Cell
Double-click a cell (or select it and press F2) to edit its contents directly, rather than replacing them entirely. If you just start typing over a cell that already has something in it, you'll overwrite it completely — that's usually what you want, but not always.
Excel Guesses Your Data Type
Excel automatically detects whether what you typed is text, a number, or a date, and formats it accordingly — numbers align right, text aligns left. If you type 1/5, Excel will likely turn it into a date (January 5th) rather than the fraction one-fifth, which trips a lot of people up the first time.
AutoFill
Drag the small square at the bottom-right corner of a selected cell (the fill handle) to copy its content into adjacent cells, or to continue a pattern — type "Monday" and drag it across, and Excel will fill in Tuesday, Wednesday, and so on.
Common Mistakes
- Typing a fraction like 1/5 and being surprised when it becomes a date
- Not realizing F2 lets you edit in place instead of retyping the whole cell
Practice Exercise
In a blank sheet, type the days of the week (Monday through Sunday) down column A by typing "Monday" in A1 and then using AutoFill to complete the rest.
Key Takeaways
- Enter confirms and moves down; Tab confirms and moves right
- F2 edits a cell in place
- The fill handle can copy values or continue a pattern