Worksheet Basics Excel 2013

Introduction

Video: Worksheet Basics

Every workbook contains at least one worksheet by default. When working with a large amount of data, you can create multiple worksheets to help organize your workbook and make it easier to find content. You can also group worksheets to quickly add information to multiple worksheets at the same time.

Optional: Download our practice workbook.

To rename a worksheet:

Whenever you create a new Excel workbook, it will contain one worksheet named Sheet1. You can rename a worksheet to better reflect its content. In our example, we will create a training log organized by month.

1. Right-click the worksheet you want to rename, then select Rename from the worksheet menu.
   
2. Type the desired name for the worksheet.
   
3. Click anywhere outside of the worksheet, or press Enter on your keyboard. The worksheet will be renamed.
   

To insert a new worksheet:

1. Locate and select the New sheet button.
   
2. A new blank worksheet will appear.
   

To change the default number of worksheets, navigate to Backstage view, click Options, then choose the desired number of worksheets to include in each new workbook.

To delete a worksheet:

1. Right-click the worksheet you want to delete, then select Delete from the worksheet menu.
   
2. The worksheet will be deleted from your workbook.
   

If you want to prevent specific worksheets from being edited or deleted, you can protect them by right-clicking the desired worksheet and then selecting Protect sheet from the worksheet menu.

To copy a worksheet:

If you need to duplicate the content of one worksheet to another, Excel allows you to copy an existing worksheet.

1. Right-click the worksheet you want to copy, then select Move or Copy from the worksheet menu.
   
2. The Move or Copy dialog box will appear. Choose where the sheet will appear in the Before sheet: field. In our example, we'll choose (move to end) to place the worksheet to the right of the existing worksheet.
3. Check the box next to Create a copy, then click OK.
   
4. The worksheet will be copied. It will have the same title as the original worksheet, as well as a version number. In our example, we copied the January worksheet, so our new worksheet is named January (2). All content from the January worksheet has also been copied to the January (2) worksheet.
   

You can also copy a worksheet to an entirely different workbook. You can select any workbook that is currently open from the To book: drop-down menu.

To move a worksheet:

Sometimes you may want to move a worksheet to rearrange your workbook.

1. Select the worksheet you want to move. The cursor will become a small worksheet icon .
2. Hold and drag the mouse until a small black arrow appears above the desired location.
   
3. Release the mouse. The worksheet will be moved.
   

To change the worksheet color:

You can change a worksheet's color to help organize your worksheets and make your workbook easier to navigate.

1. Right-click the desired worksheet, and hover the mouse over Tab Color. The Color menu will appear.
2. Select the desired color. A live preview of the new worksheet color will appear as you hover the mouse over different options. In our example, we'll choose Red.
   
3. The worksheet color will be changed.
   

The worksheet color is considerably less noticeable when the worksheet is selected. Select another worksheet to see how the color will appear when the worksheet is not selected.

Grouping and ungrouping worksheets

You can work with each worksheet individually, or you can work with multiple worksheets at the same time. Worksheets can be combined together into a group. Any changes made to one worksheet in a group will be made to every worksheet in the group.

To group worksheets:

In our example, employees need to receive training every three months, so we'll create a worksheet group for those employees. When we add the names of the employees to one worksheet, they'll be added to the other worksheets in the group as well.

1. Select the first worksheet you want to include in the worksheet group.
   
2. Press and hold the Ctrl key on your keyboard.
3. Select the next worksheet you want in the group. Continue to select worksheets until all of the worksheets you want to group are selected.
   
4. Release the Ctrl key. The worksheets are now grouped.

While worksheets are grouped, you can navigate to any worksheet within the group. Any changes made to one worksheet will appear on every worksheet in the group. However, if you select a worksheet that is not in the group, all of your worksheets will become ungrouped. 

To ungroup all worksheets:

1. Right-click a worksheet in the group, then select Ungroup Sheets from the worksheet menu.
   
2. The worksheets will be ungrouped. Alternatively, you can simply click any worksheet not included in the group to ungroup all worksheets.