Guide: Swap Columns in Excel: Tips and Tutorials

Excel users often argue about the usefulness of tables with multiple columns. However, Excel does not include any toolbar options that allow users to rearrange their tables. But what if you need to swap a few columns in a table? Many Excel users will have to rearrange their tables by swapping columns, and there are a few ways you can do that, even though the application doesn’t include a column management tool. ..

Swap table columns with the copy and paste shortcut keys

Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V are two essential Windows keyboard shortcuts that allow you to copy and paste images or text. However, you can only copy one range of cells at a time to the Windows clipboard. This means that if you want to swap table columns by copying and pasting them, you’ll need to use another keyboard shortcut such as Ctrl + C (copy) or Ctrl + V (paste).

You can still swap columns in a spreadsheet table with the Copy and Paste keyboard shortcut, bypassing the limitations of the Windows clipboard. This includes copying and pasting the table columns to switch to blank spreadsheet columns. Then you can still rearrange the columns to your liking.

Column 1: Jan Column 2: Feb Column 3: March Column 4: Apr Cell A1: Column 1 Cell B1: Column 2 Cell A2: Jan Cell B2: Feb Cell B3: March Cell B4: Apr ..

Now you have two table columns to swap. Click the column A header to select the entire column. Press Ctrl + C to copy the table column to the clipboard. Then select column E and paste column 1 there by pressing Ctrl + V. Column E will therefore contain column 1, as shown below.

Then select column B and press Ctrl + C. Select column A and press Ctrl + V. This copies column 2 to column A. Now the table contains two double columns.

You can now copy and paste the cell contents from column E into column B. Copy column E with the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + C. Click on the top of column B and press Ctrl + V to paste column 1 there. Then you have effectively swapped the first and second columns in the table like in the snapshot below. ..

Column E still contains column 1. Now you can delete the duplicated table column by right-clicking the top of column E and selecting Delete from the context menu. This will remove Column 1 from Column E and leave only Column 2. Your spreadsheet will then match the spreadsheet directly below with table Column 1 in B and Column 2 in A. ..

Swap table columns with cut and paste

You can swap columns by copying and pasting them, but that’s probably not the best way to rearrange tables. Excel includes a Cut option that effectively copies a spreadsheet column. As such, Cut also allows you to rearrange spreadsheet tables.

Click the header of column B in your spreadsheet. Then press Ctrl + X to select the Cut option, which is otherwise in the context menu. Select and right-click the A column to open the context menu, and select the Insert Cut Cells option there. That will swap columns 1 and 2 again so that the first table column is in A and the second is in B, as shown below.

Drag table columns

You can drag table columns to swap them. This is a drag and drop method to rearrange spreadsheet tables. Dragging the columns to swap them is faster than copying and pasting them.

Click on the arrow to move the selection box to the right.

To swap the two table columns, hold down the Shift key and drag the selected column slightly to the right over column B. You need to drag it until a small C: C box appears as shown in the shot directly below. Release the Shift key and mouse button. ..

Swap columns with Kutools for Excel

If you still need a toolbar tool to swap columns with, please visit Kutools for Excel. That is an add-on that extends Excel with extra tools and options. It includes a Swap Ranges tool to swap columns with. The add-on is available for $ 39.00 and you can also try a full two month trial of Kutools.

You can select a Kutools tab in Excel which contains a range button. Press Range and select Switching Ranges from the menu. That opens a Swap Ranges dialog that allows you to select two ranges to swap. Select an entire column as range one and another as range two and press OK button to exchange them.

Excel users can rearrange spreadsheet tables by copying and pasting, cutting and pasting, or dragging columns. Alternatively, you can add Swap Ranges tool to the application with Kutools for Excel and swap table rows with it.

Swap Columns in Excel: Tips and Tutorials: benefits

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Final note

Swap columns in Excel can be a great way to organize your data. This guide provides tips and tutorials on how to use swap columns in Excel. If you have any questions about this article, please feel free to ask us. Additionally, please share this article with your friends if you enjoyed it! ..

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