How to Merge Cells

Study the spreadsheet below:

An Excel 2007 Spreadsheet

If you look at Row 1, you'll see that the "Shopping Bill" heading stretches across three cells. This is not three separate cells, with a colour change for each individual cell. The A1, B1 and C1 cells were merged. To merge cells, do the following.

Type the words Shopping Bill into cell A1 of a spreadsheet
Highlight the cells A1, B1 and C1
On the Alignment panel of the Excel Ribbon, locate the "Merge and Center" item:

Merge and Centre

Click the down arrow to see the following options:

Merge Options in Excel 2007

Click on "Merge and Center". Your three cells will then become one - A1, to be exact!

OK, now that you know how to merge cells, have a go at the following Review on the next page. It will test your new skills in Excel 2007/2010/