Adding Borders to a Cell or a Range in Excel

People often use borders to group a range of similar cells or simply as a way to delineate rows or columns for aesthetic purposes.

To add borders around a cell or range, follow these steps:

1) Select the cell or range.

2) Click the arrow on the Borders button in the Ribbon’s Home tab. Excel displays
the Borders menu.

3) Choose a border style from the menu. Excel applies the border to your selection. In addition, the Borders button icon changes to reflect your border selection.

If the available styles on the menu aren't what you want, follow these steps to select further options:

1) At the bottom of the Borders menu, choose More Borders. Excel displays the Format Cells dialog box with the Borders tab selected.

2) If you want to change the default color, choose a color for the border from the Color drop-down palette.

3) In the Style area of the dialog box, select a line style.

4) Select the border position(s) for the line style by clicking in the Text window or by clicking one or more buttons surrounding the Text window. To deselect a line in Text window, click the line. Note that you can apply diagonal borders that extend through cells and ranges. Diagonal borders give the effect of the cells being "crossed out."

5) Click OK to apply the border(s) to your selection.

TIP: If you use border formatting in your worksheet, you may want to turn off the grid display to make the borders more pronounced. Click the View tab on the Ribbon and then click the Gridlines option to remove its check mark.

Tags: ribbon

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