How to Use Ctrl + F in Excel

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The Find and Replace feature of Microsoft Excel is often needed in spreadsheets that contain a lot of data and workbooks. This feature scans your worksheet or workbook for specific words or phrases and provides that information in a list format. The "Replace" feature will change each instance of your "Find" phrase to a different set of text that you designate. "Ctrl" and "F" is the shortcut key to open the Find and Replace dialog box.

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Step 1

Open your Microsoft Excel file.

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Step 2

Press "Ctrl" and "F" to open the "Find and Replace" dialog box.

Step 3

Enter text into the "Find what:" field. Click the "Options" button to add search criteria. Your options include searching one sheet or the entire workbook, searching by row or column or designating where to look.

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Step 4

Click the "Find Next" button to go through each instance individually.

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Step 5

Click the "Find All" button to generate a chart. This chart provides a listing of the row and column of each instance of the word you searched.

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Step 6

Click the "Replace" tab to change your text. Enter the text you want to find. Enter the text you want to replace it with. Click "Replace" to go through individually. Select "Replace All" to automatically change each instance.

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