Enter the Ctrl + – (minus) shortcut in Excel. This powerful shortcut instantly deletes entire rows or columns without any confirmation. But there’s hidden trickery going on and some misleading info online.
Ctrl + – is commonly said to “delete the selected row or column” but, as usual, the reality is more complicated. Some online advice is just plain wrong. We tested Ctrl + – to see what it does and does NOT do.
Select whole rows or columns
If you select whole rows or columns then Ctrl + – will delete those rows/columns completely.
Compare that with pressing Delete/Del which leaves the rows/columns in place but removes the cell contents.
Select one cell only
But what happens if you only select one cell, not whole rows/columns – what does Ctrl + – do?
Let’s see, this sheet with cell B6 selected (using the new Focus Cell feature to highlight the selection)
Pressing Ctrl + – removes row 6 (Thai Jasmine) completely. The column is left intact.
Ctrl + – deletes whole rows that the selected cell is in.
Rows are also deleted if you select more than one cell in a row (obviously). But selecting cells down a column is different.
Select two or more cells in a column
If you select two or more cells in a column, Ctrl + – deletes that column (NOT the rows).
In this example, cells A6 and A7 are selected. Ctrl + – deletes Column A.
Select cells across rows and columns
Selecting cells across both rows and columns will delete the ROWS when Ctrl + – is pressed.
We’ve selected A6:B7, pressing Ctrl + – deletes rows 6 and 7. The columns stay unchanged.
How to delete rows from a list
To delete rows from a list, DON’T select a single column of cells. That will remove the column when Ctrl + – is pressed.
Instead select at least two columns in each row you want to delete. Then Ctrl + – ‘knows’ you mean to remove rows.
Continuous blocks of cells only
Ctrl + – only works for continuous cell selections (rectangles, if you like). Selecting non-contiguous (not neighboring) cells then Ctrl + – returns an error. “Cannot use that command on overlapping selections” isn’t a well worded error message.
Even selecting a contiguous block of cells by individual selection (holding down Ctrl) gives the same error.
There’s a tip going around that using ‘Select Blanks” (Ctrl + G then Special) can be used with Ctrl + -. But that only works if the blanks are in a single block, which rarely happens in the Real World™
Do the people writing these tips bother to try them before writing?
Hidden and Protected are deleted
This shortcut takes whatever is selected, even if it’s hidden or protected.
Undo DOES work
We noticed some mentions of Ctrl + – that says there’s “No undo warning, no second chances.”, presumably to make a more dramatic ‘tip’. That’s WRONG.
Undo (Ctrl + Z) will reverse the a Ctrl + – deletion.
Pro Tips for Mastery
Before diving into this shortcut, always:
- Save your file (Ctrl + S) – always a wise move even though Undo is available.
- Double-check your selection
- Look for hidden rows or columns
Even though Undo is available, there’s no harm in taking a backup first. It can save you hours of regret.
