Buzz
Auto-filling cells in Excel prevents manual entry for each cell, especially when dealing with contiguous data.
The Auto-fill feature analyzes data from previously entered cells and automatically predicts the next contents. While it is widely used for both numerical and text data, its effectiveness is significantly higher with numerical data, as Excel lacks full support for the Vietnamese language. If you are working with English text data, the quality of Auto-fill is comparable.
1. Auto-fill with Text Data
Auto-filling cells with text data proves effective when you need to input random data without following a specific pattern or adhering to any particular accuracy.
Example: In this guide, we will generate a list of random names.
Step 1: Enter the contents for the respective columns.
Step 2: For the Name column, simply input any name as a sample.
Step 3: Then, select the newly entered name cell and choose Data (1) => Flash Fill (2) to activate the quick fill feature in Excel.
Step 4: Immediately, the system will automatically fill in the data for the corresponding cells in the list.
2. Auto-fill Cells with Numeric Data
One of the most common applications of auto-filling cells with numeric data is entering sequence numbers, a range of numbers sorted from small to large.
For example: In this section, we will populate sequence numbers for 10 consecutive rows
Step 1: Enter at least the first 2 numbers of the sequence list.
Step 2: Next, select both newly entered sequence number cells; the system will display the Flash Fill lightning bolt icon.
Step 3: Now, click on the (+) sign at the bottom right of the cell and drag it to the position where you want to auto-fill the numbers.
Illustration: Automatically populating date data with a predefined adjacent two-day range.
Step 1: Input the sample data of two dates into the cell, and the subsequent data will increment.
Step 2: Then, select both cells to activate the Flash Fill feature and drag the plus sign (+) to auto-fill the remaining cells.
Step 3: Congratulations, you have completed filling in the data for the remaining cells in the list.
4. Automatically Populate Cells with Month Data
Similar to other data, month data can also be auto-filled if you use English month names.
Step 1: Enter the month data for the first two adjacent cells.
Step 2: Then, select both cells to activate Flash Fill and drag the plus sign (+) icon to auto-fill the remaining cells.
5. Automatically Populate Cells with Year Data
For the year data section, you can also utilize the fill cell feature to quickly fill in the upcoming years in the subsequent cells in Excel.
Step 1: Enter the year data for the first two adjacent cells.
Step 2: Then, select the 2 cells to make the Flash Fill feature appear, and drag the plus sign (+) icon to apply cell filling for the remaining sections.
In this article, Software Tips has guided you on how to auto-fill cells in Excel. Wishing you all a delightful day!
