How to Name a Cell in Excel (4 Easy Ways)

We can name multiple items in Excel. Name a cell is one of them. There are items to name such as,

⧭ A Cell or A Range of Cells

⧭ Certain Values

⧭ Formula

In this article, we discuss how to name a cell using Excel’s various features.

Why Name a Cell in Excel?

In Excel, we work with a very big dataset containing numerous rows and columns. In that case, finding and referencing a specific category data type gets quite hard. To make operations easier, it’s convenient to assign a name to a single cell or a range of cells depending on their data types. After assigning names, we can simply type the names to find or reference them wherever we want. It’s also lucid to understand the operations or arguments we put in formulas.

Suppose in a dataset, we have multiple Products with this sold Quantity, Unit Price, and Total Price. We want to assign names in cells to use them in formulas or anywhere we want.

Read More: What Is the Definition of Cell in Excel

How to Name a Cell in Excel: 4 Easy Ways

Method 1: Using Name Box Feature to Name a Cell

In Excel, the Name Box is the Input Box that exists to the left of the Formula Bar. You can assign a name to a cell using it.

Step 1: Select a cell (i.e., D4) that you want to assign a name to. Go to the Name Box then Type any name (i.e., Quantity) in your mind.

Press ENTER. Excel assigns Quantity as the Name of the selected cell (i.e., D4).

You can assign Unit_Price as Name for cell E4 following Step 1.

Afterward, you can use the assigned names to formulas to make them understood immediately. Instead of cell references D4 and E4 just Type Quantity and Unit_Price, Excel will automatically highlight them as cell references as shown in the following picture.

Hit ENTER to calculate the Total Price similar to the image below.

You can assign names to a range of cells in order to navigate efficiently. Naming a range is similar to naming a range. As we’re discussing only naming a cell, we’ll discuss it in another article.

Method 2: Using Define Name Feature 

Excel offers a Define Name feature in the Formulas tab. Using Define Name features you can assign names to any cells you want.

Step 1: Select a cell (i.e.,D4). Go to Formulas Tab > Select Define Name (from Defined Names section).

Step 2: The New Name dialog box appears.

Type any name (i.e., Quantity) in the Name designated box. Select Define Name worksheet as Scope.

Click OK.

You can use the assigned names as cell references as shown in the picture below.

Press ENTER, you’ll see the PRODUCT function works using assigned names similar to the image below.

Method 3: Using Name Manager to Name a Cell

Excel has a Name Manager feature under the Formulas tab. You can easily assign a name to a cell using the Name Manager feature.

Step 1: Go to Formulas Tab > Select Name Manger (from Defined Names section).

Step 2: The Name Manager dialog box pops up. Click on NEW.

Step 3: Write any name in the Name box (i.e., Quantity). Choose the Name Manager worksheet as Scope.

Click OK.

You can assign cell reference; E5, as Unit_Price following Step 1 to 3 then use Quantity (i.e., D4) and Unit_Price (i.e., E4) instead of cell references in the PRODUCT formula to calculate Total Price.

⧬ You can use keyboard shortcuts CTRL+F3 and ⌘+ Fn+F3 to bring up the Name Manager dialog box in Windows and MACs respectively.

Method 4: Using Create from Selection Feature

In the Defined Names section under the Formulas tab, Excel offers Create from Selection feature by which you can assign Names to individual cells abiding by four orientations. They are

⧫ Top Row

⧫ Left Column

⧫ Right Column

⧫ Bottom Row

As we want to name a single cell, we want them to be different in their names. We can choose the Left or Right Column values to assign as names. For this data type, we use the Left Column’s values to assign the names of individual cells names.

Step 1: Select a range of cells (i.e., Product and Quantity column).

Step 2: The Create Names from Selection dialog box appears.

Checked the Left Column option. By doing so, the entries in the Quantity column will get the Product names as their assigned names.

Click OK.

You can click on the Name Box to see all the assigned names. You’ll find all the Product Names assigned as Names to the Quantity column entries.

In formulas, you can also use the individual cell’s assigned names as cell reference and the formula works.

⧬ Keyboard shortcuts CTRL+SHIFT+F3 make the Create from Selection dialog box appear in Windows.

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Conclusion

In this article, we use multiple Excel features to name a cell in Excel. Excel’s Name Box feature does the job with just one step. Other Excel features like Define Name, Name Manger, or Create from Selection to do the job in more than one step. Hope these above-discussed methods satisfy your quest. Comment, if you have further queries or have something to add.

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