Indentation in Excel – 5 Methods

This is an overview.

Download Practice Workbook

Download the workbook and practice.

Method 1 – Indent Using Ribbon Option

• Select C5:C12.
• Go to the Home tab and click Alignment.
• Select Increase Indent.

This is the output.

• To indent cells leftward, go to Home >> Alignment.
• Select Decrease Indent.

This is the output.

Method 2 – Indent Using a Keyboard Shortcut

For rightward indentation,

• Select C5:C15.
• Press ALT + H + 6.

• For leftward indentation, select the cells.
• Press ALT + H + 5.

Method 3 – Using the Space Bar to Indent Manually

• Click the cell and press the space button.

Method 4 – Using the Format Cells Dialog Box

• Select C5:C12 and right-click.
• Select Format Cells.

• Go to Alignment and change the Indent. Here, to 4.
• Click OK.

This is the output.

Method 5 -Using the Wrap Text Feature

• Select C12 and go to the Home tab.
• Select Alignment group and choose Wrap Text.
• Increase the row height manually.

• Click the line to add indent and press ALT + ENTER.

This is the output.

• Enter space at the start of 2nd line.

This is the output.

How to Find the Indentation Level?

To find the indentation level, insert a column (Indentation Level).

• Select a cell and press CTRL + F to open up the Find and Replace window.
• Choose Format.

• Change the Indent. Here, to 1.
• Click OK.

• Click Find All in the Find and Replace window.

• You will find information on data containing Indent 1.
• To mark it with different colors, select the cells in the Find and Replace window.
• Select a Fill Color in Font.

• Repeat the process to mark all indentations in the column.

• Filter the column by choosing Filter by Color.
• Enter a number based on the filled color in the Indentation Level column manually.

• Enter the indentation level and drag down the Fill Handle to see the result in the rest of the cells.

• Repeat the process for the other colors.
• Remove the filter.

This is the output.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can I apply different levels of indentation to different parts of a cell’s text?

No, in Excel, the indentation settings apply to the entire content of a cell.

2. Is it possible to indent numbers or formulas in Excel?

No, indentation in Excel is primarily used to adjust the alignment of text within a cell.

3. Does indentation in Excel affect the cell width or height?

No, indentation does not directly affect the width or height of a cell. It only changes the horizontal alignment of the text within the cell.

4. Can I remove the indentation from a cell’s text in Excel?

Yes, following these steps:

• Select the cell(s).
• Right-click the selected cell(s) and choose Format Cells.
• In the Format Cells dialog box, choose Alignment.
• In Indent, set the indentation value to 0.
• Click OK.

Indentation in Excel: Knowledge Hub

• How to Indent Twice the Data in Excel
• Indent Bullet Points of a Cell in Excel
• Remove Indent in Excel

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