How to change alignment in Excel, justify, distribute and fill cells

This tutorial demonstrates how to align cells and text within Microsoft Excel, covering various methods and scenarios. Excel defaults to aligning numbers bottom-right and text bottom-left, but this can be easily modified.

We'll explore alignment adjustments using the ribbon, keyboard shortcuts, the Format Cells dialog, and custom number formats. Specific techniques include text orientation changes, justification, text distribution, and aligning numbers by decimal points or specific characters.

Ribbon-Based Alignment:

Select the target cell(s). The Home tab's Alignment group offers options for vertical (Top, Middle, Bottom) and horizontal (Left, Center, Right) alignment. Note that vertical alignment's visual impact requires adjusting row height. The Orientation button allows text rotation for better labeling in narrow columns. The Indent icons control text indentation within cells.

Keyboard Shortcuts:

For quick alignment changes, use these shortcuts:

• Top: Alt H, A, T
• Middle: Alt H, A, M
• Bottom: Alt H, A, B
• Left: Alt H, A, L
• Center: Alt H, A, C
• Right: Alt H, A, R

Pressing Alt H displays all available alignment shortcuts.

Format Cells Dialog:

The Format Cells dialog (Ctrl 1 or the Alignment group's Dialog Box Launcher) provides more advanced options. The Alignment tab offers:

• Fill: Repeats cell content across its width.
• Justify: Wraps text, evenly spacing it between left and right edges.
• Distributed: Evenly distributes text across the cell width or height.
• Center Across Selection: Centers the leftmost cell's content across a selection.

The dialog also controls text wrapping, shrinking to fit, and cell merging. Text orientation can be precisely adjusted using the Degrees box or pointer.

Custom Number Formats for Alignment:

While not the primary purpose, custom number formats can enforce alignment. The asterisk () followed by a space character (" ") can left-align numbers. More complex formats can control alignment for positive, negative, zero, and text values.

Aligning Numbers by Decimal Point:

Use custom number formats with the "?" placeholder to align numbers by their decimal points. For example, "0.0?" displays one digit before and after the decimal, aligning decimals visually. Adding a leading underscore ("_") and semicolons can further refine alignment and handling of negative numbers.

Aligning by Specific Characters:

For precise alignment by a specific character (e.g., " "), use a helper column with a formula like =REPT(" ",12-FIND(" ",A2))&A2, employing a monotype font for consistent character width. This formula adds leading spaces based on the character's position.

This comprehensive guide provides multiple methods for achieving precise cell and text alignment in Excel, catering to various needs and skill levels.

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