You would like to cross out cells in a Excel, in order to mark their content as deleted / archived, but you don't know how to do it? Do not worry. Even if a little hidden from the eyes of users, especially the less experienced ones like you, this function is there and it is very easy to use. You just have to learn the right key combinations and discover the menus to go to when you need to apply strikethrough to text.
In short: follow the instructions I am about to give you and I assure you that you will learn, in no time, say how to tick an Excel box taking advantage of the special feature of the famous Microsoft software, both on Windows and on macOS. I bet you will be pleasantly surprised at how easy it is!
Just a little clarification before starting: I will use for the tutorial Office 2022 which, at the time of writing, is the most recent version of the Microsoft suite. However, the indications given in the article should be valid for all editions of Excel, both those with a tabbed interface, Ribbon (Office 2007 and later), and older ones with classic toolbars (for example Office 2003). In addition, I will explain how to act from Excel Online, the web version of the program, and from the Excel apps for smartphones and tablets. I would say that, at this point, all I have to do is wish you good reading and, above all, good work!
Index
Please tick a box in Excel for PC and Mac
All you need to do to find out how to tick an Excel box on Windows or macOS is to open the document you intend to work on. At this point, select the box of the spreadsheet to tick and, if you are using a Windows PC, press the key combination Ctrl + B: the contents of the cell will be crossed out instantly.
If you are using a Mac or do not find it particularly easy to use keyboard shortcuts, you can obtain the same result by right clicking on the cell to be crossed out and selecting the item Formato that give the menu to compare.
In the window that opens, then select the tab Character, metti il segno di spunta accanto alla voce Strikethrough and click on the button OK to save the changes. Easy, right?
It should be noted that both techniques (the combination of keyboard keys and changing the cell format) can also be used to tick multiple boxes at the same time.
All you have to do is select all the cells to tick and then press Ctrl + B or access the menu Formato that, as I explained to you earlier. To select several cells at the same time, you can use the mouse or the keyboard: in the first case, you have to click on the first cell to be selected and then, if you want to cross out adjacent cells, drag the pointer in the direction of the cells to be selected while holding down the left mouse button. Alternatively, if the cells to be crossed out are located in distant points of the spreadsheet, you can select them one by one by combining Ctrl + click (o cmd + click on Mac) and then proceed with applying the strikethrough effect as illustrated above.
To select cells with the keyboard, however, you have to move around the spreadsheet using the directional arrows and then, to select the cells adjacent to the one you're on, use the combination Ctrl + directional arrow (in the direction of the cells to be selected). If you're using a Mac, the combination you need to use is cmd + directional arrow.
If you want tick an Excel box having a diagonal frieze along the entire cell and not only on the text contained in it, act as follows: first, right-click on the cell to be crossed out and select the item Formato that give the menu to compare.
In the window that opens, select the tab Board, then choose the thickness and / or style of the line with which to tick the selected box using the box Style. Finally click on the button / or on the button and save the changes using the button OK. For best effect, center the text in the strikethrough cell.
The procedure to follow is the same on both Windows and macOS. Also in this case, it is possible to apply the strikethrough effect on several boxes at the same time by selecting them (you can also select entire columns or rows) before accessing the screen with the settings relating to the cell format. Very easy, right?
Once you have made all the desired changes to your spreadsheet, you can save the file by clicking on the floppy disk located at the top left. If you don't want to overwrite the original file, but save your spreadsheet as a new document, click on the item Fillet placed at the top left and, if you use Windows, select the item first Save with name from the bar that appears on the side and then on the button Shop by Department. A Macinstead, select the item Save with name from the menu that appears on the screen.
Please tick a box in Excel Online
Do you need to urgently edit a spreadsheet but sadly, the computer you're currently working with doesn't have a copy of Excel installed on it? No problem. With Excel Online you can access a "light" version of the famous Microsoft software that works directly from the browser and does not require any subscription or payment to be used. Works with all popular web browsers (eg. Chrome, Firefox o Safari) and does not require the installation of additional software or plugins: all you need to use it is a Microsoft account, which you, if necessary, can get you in a few clicks by following the instructions in my post on how create a Microsoft account.
To edit a spreadsheet with Excel Online, you must first upload it to OneDrive, the Microsoft cloud storage service I told you about in my dedicated tutorial. Connected, therefore, to the main OneDrive page, click on the button Go to my OneDrive (if required) and log in to yours Microsoft account using username and password.
At this point, drag your spreadsheet into the browser window and wait a few seconds for the upload to complete. You can follow the progress of the procedure via the icon arrow which appears at the top right.
Once the upload is complete, click on the spreadsheet icon in OneDrive to open Excel Online and start editing it. To tick a box, click on it (or select it with directional arrows keyboard), select the tab Home located at the top left and click button a B C located in the Excel toolbar.
As easily imaginable, you can cross out multiple cells at the same time by selecting them and then clicking on the buttona B C which is at the top left. You cannot, however, apply a diagonal strikethrough effect, as Excel Online does not provide this type of formatting for cells (as I mentioned earlier, it is a "light" version of Excel, so it does not include all features of the Windows or macOS counterpart of the program).
When you are satisfied with the result, you can download the spreadsheet you edited in Excel Online by clicking on the button Fillet located at the top left, by selecting the item Save with name from the bar that appears on the side and then pressing the button Download a copy.
Please tick a box in Excel on smartphones and tablets
Excel it is also available as an app for smartphones and tablets. It is compatible with Android, iOS and Windows 10 Mobile and can be used at no cost on all devices with a screen not exceeding 10.1 ″ (otherwise it requires subscription to the service Office 365, starting from 7 euros / month). However, sorry to tell you, it doesn't support adding strikethrough to text.
Does this mean you have to give up now and forgo ticking a box in Excel from your mobile device? Not necessarily. If you find yourself in an emergency situation, you can resort to a device that allows, in some way, to get the text crossed out in the Excel app for Android, iOS or Windows 10 Mobile.
The expedient I am referring to is the generation of a strikethrough text through one of the many online services suitable for the purpose and its insertion into the Excel app via copy-and-paste: in this way a "perfect" result is not obtained from a technical point of view (as the text is not really crossed out, it is simply written with a font that includes the crossed out effect inside it), but in emergency situations you can also be able to save your work from smartphones and tablets.
Among the many services that allow you to generate strikethrough text, I recommend Cross Out Text / Strikethrough T̶e̶x̶t̶ Generator, which you can find by connecting to this web page and you can use in a very simple way: all you have to do is type in the field Enter your text here: the strikethrough text you want to paste into Excel, then you have to press the button StrikeEm and you have to copy the strikethrough text that appears at the bottom (by making a long tap on it, perfecting the selection using the indicators that appear on the screen and choosing the option Copy from the context menu of your device).
At this point, open the spreadsheet where you want to insert the strikethrough text in the app Excel, make a long tap on the cell of your interest and select the item Paste (iOS) or the icon of the folder (Android) from the menu that opens to paste the strikethrough text. Easier than that ?!
