Move or copy cells, rows, or columns

When you move or copy a cell in Excel, the content of the moved or copied cell overwrites any data in the destination cell. Likewise, any formatting applied to the cell (including conditional formatting  and data validation), overwrites any formatting that existed in the destination cell.

If the cell contains a formula, the cell reference are not adjusted. Therefore, the contents of the moved or copied cell and of any cells that point to them might display the #REF! error value. If that happens, you will have to adjust the references manually. For more information, see Detect errors in formulas

Do any of the following:

Move or copy cells

1. Select the cells or range of cells that you want to move or copy.

2. Point to the border of the cell or range that you selected.

3. When the pointer becomes a , do one of the following:

To	Do this
Move cells	Drag the cells to another location.
Copy cells	Hold down OPTION and drag the cells to another location.

1. Note: When you drag or paste cells to a new location, if there is pre-existing data in that location, Excel will overwrite the original data.

Move or copy rows or columns

1. Select the rows or columns that you want to move or copy.

2. Point to the border of the cell or range that you selected.

3. When the pointer becomes a , do one of the following:

To	Do this
Move rows or columns	Drag the rows or columns to another location.
Copy rows or columns	Hold down OPTION and drag the rows or columns to another location.
Move or copy data between existing rows or columns	Hold down SHIFT and drag your row or column between existing rows or columns. Excel makes space for the new row or column.

Convert columns to rows, or rows to columns

1. Copy the rows or columns that you want to transpose.

2. Select the destination cell (the first cell of the row or column into which you want to paste your data) for the rows or columns that you are transposing.

3. On the Home tab, under Edit, click the arrow next to Paste, and then click Transpose.

   

   Note: Columns and rows cannot overlap. For example, if you select values in Column C, and try to paste them into a row that overlaps Column C, Excel displays an error message. The destination area of a pasted column or row must be outside the original values.

See also

Insert or delete cells, rows, columns