Move or copy a formula

It's important to be aware of what can happen to cell references, whether they are absolute or relative, when you move a formula by cutting and pasting it, or copy a formula by copying and pasting it.

• When you move a formula, the cell references within the formula do not change no matter what type of cell reference that you use.

• When you copy a formula, the cell references may change based on the type of cell reference that you use.

Move a formula

1. Select the cell that contains the formula that you want to move.

2. On the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click Cut.

   You can also move formulas by dragging the border of the selected cell to the upper-left cell of the paste area. Any existing data is replaced.

3. Do one of the following:

   • To paste the formula and any formatting, on the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click Paste.

   • To paste the formula only, on the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click Paste, click Paste Special, and then click Formulas.

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Copy a formula

1. Select the cell that contains the formula that you want to copy.

2. On the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click Copy.

3. Do one of the following:

   • To paste the formula and any formatting, on the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click Paste.

   • To paste the formula only, on the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click Paste, click Paste Special, and then click Formulas.

     Note: You can paste only the formula results. On the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click Paste, click Paste Special, and then click Values.

4. Verify that the cell references in the formula produce the result that you want. If necessary, switch the type of reference by doing the following:

5. 1. Select the cell that contains the formula.

   2. In the formula bar , select the reference that you want to change.

   3. Press F4 to switch between the combinations.

      The following table summarizes how a reference type updates if a formula that contains the reference is copied two cells down and two cells to the right.

For a formula being copied:	If the reference is:	It changes to:
	$A$1 (absolute column and absolute row)	$A$1
	A$1 (relative column and absolute row)	C$1
	$A1 (absolute column and relative row)	$A3
	A1 (relative column and relative row)	C3

Note: You can also copy formulas into adjacent cells by using the fill handle . After verifying that the cell references in the formula produce the result that you want in step 4, select the cell that contains the copied formula, and then drag the fill handle over the range that you want to fill.

See Also

Copy and paste a formula to another cell or worksheet

Switch between relative, absolute, and mixed references