Learn Microsoft Excel from A-Z: Beginner To Expert Course

Learn how to open Microsoft Excel using a desktop shortcut, the start menu, or the search bar on Windows 10, and note the start screen for version-specific differences.

Determine your Excel version from the start screen, then use the home, new, and open tabs to access blank workbooks, templates, and recent files.

Explore the Excel interface, including the quick access toolbar, ribbon with command groups, formula bar and name box, and switch between touch and mouse modes.

Explore the Excel status bar to view sums, averages, counts, and min/max, customize it with right-click, and switch between normal, page layout, and page break views.

Compare an Excel workbook and an Excel worksheet; a workbook contains multiple worksheets, while a worksheet holds rows and columns, offering billions of cells and no limit on worksheets.

Save a workbook using save as to choose location, name, and file type (xlsx); save regularly to keep changes or save as to create a new copy.

Learn to customize the Excel quick access toolbar in three ways—via the drop-down menu, by right-clicking a command, and through file options—to add frequently used commands and save time.

Learn to customize the Excel ribbon by adding new groups and tabs, renaming them, and placing commands such as email into a personalized workflow.

Explore Excel shortcut keys for Windows and Mac, learn to access full lists on Microsoft support, and practice common combos to save time and boost efficiency.

Learn how to create clear labels in Excel by entering a spreadsheet title, expense labels, and month headers, preparing a monthly expense report for future formulas and charts.

Enter numeric data like cost of goods sold for January; Excel right-aligns numbers to align decimals. Avoid mixing text with numbers, and use undo to correct; learn formatting and formulas.

Convert text date headings to real date values in Excel by entering dates and applying date formats, including three-letter month formats, and use the fill handle to copy formatting.

Learn to build basic Excel formulas to total monthly expenses using cell referencing, the equals sign, and the formula bar, and verify totals with the status bar.

Explore how Excel applies the order of operations to formulas, starting with parentheses, exponents, then multiplication and division, then addition and subtraction. Use the evaluate formula tool to confirm results.

Explore how relative references change when you copy formulas across columns and rows using the fill handle, and how absolute references keep totals constant with dollar signs.

Explore how Excel functions provide predefined formulas from a vast library to boost efficiency. Identify function arguments, use the function arguments window, and work with the formula bar and library.

Learn how the sum function adds a range of numbers in Excel, with multiple ways to insert it, use the function arguments window, and apply auto sum for quick totals.

Learn how to use the min and max functions in Excel to identify the smallest and largest values in a data range, adjust ranges, and copy formulas across columns.

Compare count, counta, and count blank functions to determine how many numeric values, non-empty cells, and empty cells exist in a range, using January expenses as examples.

Learn how to move, copy, and paste data within and between sheets, using drag and drop or cut and paste, while preserving formulas and handling relative and absolute references.

Insert and delete rows and columns in Excel using multiple methods, including the home tab options, selecting whole rows, and keyboard shortcuts, while keeping formulas updated.

Adjust row height and column width in Excel using format options, dragging, and auto-fit. Learn quick tips like double-click to auto-fit and recognizing pound signs when columns are too narrow.

Hide and unhide rows and columns to keep data or formulas hidden. Use right-click or shortcuts such as ctrl+9, ctrl+shift+9, and ctrl+0, then select all to unhide.

Learn to rename, move, and delete Excel worksheets using simple steps, including double-click or right-click to rename, drag to reorder, and move or copy between workbooks.

Learn to add protection to a worksheet by locking cells, protecting the sheet (optionally with a password), and allow edits only to the months and expenses while keeping formulas intact.

Protect the workbook structure to prevent users from adding, deleting, renaming, moving, or copying sheets, using the review tab and protect workbook with an optional password.

Encrypt an Excel workbook to require a password to open. Learn to set, confirm, save, and remove the password to protect sensitive information.

Learn to format fonts and cell backgrounds in Excel to create a clean, readable report by bolding titles, coloring headings and totals, and adjusting row height and column width.

Learn how to format numeric data as monetary values in Excel using currency and accounting formats, including dollar signs, two decimals, and negative value conventions.

Master the format painter in Excel to copy and apply cell formatting—such as fill color, text color, borders, and number formats—across single cells or ranges for consistent, efficient spreadsheets.

Learn how to create and apply custom Excel styles to format cells efficiently, update all instances by editing the style, and preserve number formats and borders when needed.

Learn to create a cleaner Excel layout by merging and centering titles and notes, and using merge across. Align text, apply borders and no fill to keep formatting tidy.

Apply conditional formatting to visualize data, using rules or formulas to highlight percent of total greater than 25 percent in red and less than 10 percent in green.

Learn to use icons in Excel 365, insert them from the insert tab, and convert icons to shapes to edit individual parts, adjust colors, and group elements.

Learn to add SmartArt from the insert tab to turn spreadsheets into compelling visuals, then tailor layouts, colors, and styles to clearly present data.

Create and format a clustered column chart in Excel to visualize monthly expenses, link data dynamically, and compare costs such as cost of goods sold, supplies, and utilities.

Explore the chart design options in Excel by applying quick layouts, adjusting color schemes, and selecting styles to customize chart elements like the title, legend, and data labels.

Format chart elements by selecting the chart and using the format and home tabs to adjust the title, legend, data bars, and background. Add data labels and refine axes.

Switch rows and columns to reshape the chart data and view months or expenses from different angles. Change chart type and move charts to new sheets while keeping data linked.

Learn to create and format a pie chart in Excel that shows each expense's percentage of the total, with a clear legend, a meaningful title, and precise data labels.

Learn to print Excel spreadsheets by adjusting orientation, scaling, margins, and centering, previewing pages, condensing content to fit one page, and selectively printing active sheets or the entire workbook.

Activate the page layout view to preview print content, adjust margins, and add headers and footers directly on the sheet.

Set a print area to print a chosen range, clear it to revert, and use print selection or chart printing in the print dialog.

Convert spreadsheets to pdf files by printing to pdf or saving as pdf, and choose to publish the active sheet, a cell selection, or the entire workbook.

save time and boost efficiency by using Excel templates for repeated reports, as templates preserve formatting, formulas, and page setup while you input numbers.

Create a reusable Excel template by clearing changing cells, labeling monthly headings, and saving the setup to preserve formulas, charts, and formatting for quarterly data.