Selecting a Column

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 5, 2019)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

If you want to quickly select a column of your spreadsheet, there are two ways you can do it. Perhaps the easiest way (if you already have your hand on the mouse) is to click on the column letter at the top of the column. For instance, if you want to select column C, you would click on the C column header.

The other method works great if you are working in a particular column and your hands are on the keyboard. All you need to do is press Ctrl+Space Bar and the entire column is automatically selected.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (1922) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Deleting All Headers and Footers

Headers and footers add a finishing touch to documents, but sometimes they can be bothersome. You may need to remove them ...

Discover More

Setting the Print Area

Many people, when they print a worksheet, print the entire thing. You don't have to, however. You can specify that Excel ...

Discover More

Font Substitution Problems

When your document uses fonts that are not available on your computer system, Word substitutes other fonts that it feels ...

Discover More

Program Successfully in Excel! This guide will provide you with all the information you need to automate any task in Excel and save time and effort. Learn how to extend Excel's functionality with VBA to create solutions not possible with the standard features. Includes latest information for Excel 2024 and Microsoft 365. Check out Mastering Excel VBA Programming today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Odd Arrow Key Behavior

Press the up or down arrow keys, and you expect Excel to change which cell is selected. If this doesn't occur on your ...

Discover More

Jumping to a Range

Need a quick way to jump to a particular part of your worksheet? You can do it by using the Go To dialog box.

Discover More

Using Go To to Jump to a Chart Sheet

Create a chart on its own worksheet, and you can display it by simply clicking the tab at the bottom of the Excel work ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 6 + 4?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2026 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.