Picking a Contiguous Range of Cells

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 16, 2022)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

There are many times when you are working with Excel when you need to select a range of cells. This is very easy to do using either the keyboard, the mouse, or a combination of both.

The first step in selecting a range of cells is to select the first cell in the range. With the cell selected you are ready to proceed.

  • Using the keyboard, you can hold down the Shift key as you use the navigation keys (up, down, left, and right arrows) to extend the range.
  • Using the mouse, you can click on the first cell and hold down the mouse button as you drag the mouse to extend the range.
  • Using the keyboard and mouse, you can hold down the Shift key as you click on the cell that defines the opposite corner of the range you want selected.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (1966) 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

Resizing a Disk Partition

Windows provides you with the built-in tools to change the size of partitions on your hard drives. Here's how to use the ...

Discover More

Backing Up Your Custom Dictionaries

When you work with the spelling checker quite a bit, you eventually end up with a sizeable custom dictionary. You might ...

Discover More

Converting Text Notation Values to Numeric Values

If you convert a PDF file to an Excel worksheet, you may end up with some text values that need to have some conversion ...

Discover More

Best-Selling VBA Tutorial for Beginners Take your Excel knowledge to the next level. With a little background in VBA programming, you can go well beyond basic spreadsheets and functions. Use macros to reduce errors, save time, and integrate with other Microsoft applications. Fully updated for the latest version of Office 365. Check out Microsoft 365 Excel VBA Programming For Dummies today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Adjusting a Range's Starting Point

Select a range of cells, and one of those cells will always be the starting point for the range. This tip explains how to ...

Discover More

Quickly Updating Values

You can easily adjust the values in a range of cells by a certain amount. The key is to modify how you use the pasting ...

Discover More

Selecting a Word

There are a few editing tricks you can apply in Excel the same as you do in Word. Selecting a word from the text in a ...

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 4 - 1?

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.