Sabrina Ayon
While working with Microsoft Excel, we may need to reorganize the rows on a spreadsheet with several rows of data. If the data is not in the right order we need to reorder them. In this article, we will demonstrate the methods to shift rows in Excel.
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5 Quick Methods to Shift Rows in Excel
To reorder the data, we shift rows in Excel. To shift the rows we are going to use the following dataset. The dataset contains some employee’s Name of a company in column B, their join date as Start Date in column C, their resignation date as End Date in column D, and the total working Year in column E.
Suppose we want to keep the employee details in a sorted way. We want to organize the data as per their joining date. So, we need to shift rows 6 and 7 immediately after row 5. So, let’s look at the methods down to shift rows in excel.
1. Use Copy, Insert & Delete Options to Shift Rows in Excel
We can easily shift or move rows by using excel Copy, Insert and Delete options. This would be a long process. For this, we need to follow some steps down.
STEPS:
- Firstly, select the rows. So, we select rows 6 and 7.
- Secondly, go to the Home tab from the ribbon.
- Thirdly, under the Clipboard category, click on Copy.
- Or, you can right-click on the mouse and select Copy.
- Then, select the row where we want to insert the copied rows. Again, right-click on the mouse and select Insert Copied Cells.
- Now, you can see that the rows are now copied into the new cell.
- Finally, to remove the duplicate rows, select the previous rows which have the same value and right-click on the mouse, then select Delete.
- This will rearrange the data by the Start Date as displayed in the picture below.
Read More: Excel Formula to Move Data from One Cell to Another
2. Cut and Insert Excel Rows to Move
Alternatively, instead of copying the rows, we can cut the rows and then insert them as per our reorder requirement. To do this, we need to follow some procedures.
STEPS:
- Likewise, the previous method, in the first place, chose rows 6 and 7.
- Next, go to the Home tab from the ribbon.
- After that, click on the Cut option from the Clipboard group.
- Instead of doing this, you can right-click on the mouse and select Cut.
- Similarly, as before, select the row where you want to paste the rows.
- Then, right-click on the mouse and select Insert Cut Cells.
- Finally, you can see that the rows are shifted into other rows.
Read More: How to Shift Cells Right in Excel (4 Quick Ways)
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3. Shift Rows by Dragging Them in Excel
The simplest way to shift rows is by dragging the rows. Let’s see the steps for this.
STEPS:
- To begin with, select the rows that you want to shift.
- Then, if you put your mouse cursor on the selected row’s edge, you will see a four-dimensional arrow icon.
- Now, press Shift and Left Mouse Button together and drag the rows where you want to put them.
- This will shift the rows where you want to move them.
Read More: How to Shift Cells Up in Excel (5 Quick Ways)
4. Move Rows Automatically with Excel Sort Tool
The Sort tool allows us to sort the data by the required order. We can use the excel sort tool to shift the rows automatically. Suppose we want to reorder the data by the employee name and the order be sorted alphabetically. Let’s see the steps to do this.
STEPS:
- Firstly, select the whole data.
- Secondly, go to the Data tab from the ribbon.
- Then, under the Sort & Filter category, select Sort.
- This will appear in the Sort dialog box.
- Now, select the employee Name in the Column drop-down menu.
- Put the Sort On option as it is.
- And, select the order as A to Z from the Order drop-down menu bar.
- Further, click on the OK button to complete the procedure.
- Lastly, you will be able to see that the rows are shifted automatically by the names in alphabetical order.
Read More: Move and Size with Cells in Excel (3 Examples)
5. Excel Paste Special Feature to Shift Rows to Columns
Excel Paste Special speeds up the pasting process by allowing to pick whether formatting source or destination to preserve or by removing all formatting and only pasting the numbers or formulae. We can shift the rows to columns by using the Paste Special feature. For this, we are using the following dataset. The dataset contains only the Employee Name in column B and their Age in column C.
Now, let’s move the rows to columns by following the steps down.
STEPS:
- In the first place, select the whole dataset.
- Then, right-click on the mouse and select Copy.
- Next, click on the cell where you want to shift the rows. And, right-click again and select Paste Special.
- This will display the Paste Special dialog box.
- Now, checkmark the Transpose box and click OK.
- This will shift the rows to columns, as shown in the picture down.
Read More: How to Move Merged Cells in Excel (3 Suitable Ways)
Conclusion
The above methods will assist you in Shift Rows in Excel. I hope this will help you! If you have any questions, suggestions, or feedback please let us know in the comment section. Or you can have a glance at our other articles in the ExcelDemy.com blog!
