Rows, Columns and Cells
Rows run across, columns run down, and a cell is one square where they meet. Excel has over a million rows.
The Grid Itself
Rows are horizontal and numbered. Columns are vertical and lettered. The square where a row and a column meet is a cell, and that is where everything you type lives.
- Rows — Horizontal, numbered 1, 2, 3
- Columns — Vertical, lettered A, B, C
- Cells — One square, one piece of data
How to do it
Row = across · Column = down · Cell = one square where they meet
One row should hold one record — one invoice, one student, one transaction. That rule makes everything else work.
| Item | What it does |
|---|---|
| Row | Runs across, holds one record |
| Column | Runs down, holds one field |
| Cell | One square, one value |
| Active cell | The one with the green border |
The Size of the Grid
1,048,576 rows × 16,384 columns = over 17 billion cells per sheet
| Item | How many | Last one |
|---|---|---|
| Rows | 1,048,576 | Row 1048576 |
| Columns | 16,384 | Column XFD |
| Cells per sheet | Over 17 billion | XFD1048576 |
| Sheets per file | Limited by memory | No fixed number |
Result: 1,048,576
Excel is not the limit. Your computer's memory usually runs out long before the grid does.
Do this
- Keep one record per row
- Keep one type of data per column
- Give every column a heading
Avoid
- Putting two pieces of data in one cell
- Leaving blank rows inside your data
- Using row 1 for a title instead of headings
Practice
- Press Ctrl + Down arrow to reach the last row.
- Press Ctrl + Right arrow to reach the last column.
- Lay out five customers correctly, one per row.
- All three details in one cell per customer
- One customer per row, one detail per column
- One customer per column
Show answer
One row per record. One column per field. One value per cell. — This layout is what makes sorting, filtering and PivotTables possible.
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