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Strikethrough In Excel

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Updated Dec 20, 2024
Read Time 7 min

What Is Strikethrough In Excel?

Strikethrough in Excelย is a feature that strikes the selected cell values or puts a line between cells. If the cells have some values, the value has a line mark. It is a format in Excel that we can access from the โ€œFormat Cellsโ€ tab while right-clicking on it or from the Excel keyboard shortcut โ€œCTRL + 1โ€ from the numeric tab of the keyboard. The process is the same for removing a Strikethrough.

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For example, we will apply Excel Strikethrough to cell A1, which has the value 123.

Strikethrough in Excel Intro

We get the output shown above, i.e., as 123.

Key Takeaways

  • The Strikethrough in Excel helps users to strike any selected cell value, as a whole or a part of it, without changing the cell values, in the various methods.
  • We can add a Strikethrough in simple ways, such as using the shortcut keys, i.e., โ€œCtrl+5โ€,
  • adding the feature by creating a New tab, or in the Quick Access Toolbar, using Conditional Formatting, the Format Painter option, and a little more advanced way using the VBA Code.
  • Irrespective of the methods we use to apply Excel Strikethrough Text, we can only use the shortcut key โ€œCtrl+5โ€ to remove or delete the Strikethrough.

Top 6 Methods To Use Strikethrough In Excel

Below are the 6 methods to use Strikethrough in Excel.

  1. Using Excel Shortcut Key.
  2. Using Format Cell Options.
  3. Using from Quick Access Toolbar.
  4. Using it fromย Excel Ribbon.
  5. Using Dynamic Conditional Formatting.
  6. Using VBA.

Let us discuss each method in detail with an example.

Method #1 โ€“ Strikethrough Using the Excel Shortcut Key

The steps forStrikethroughusing theExcel shortcut keyare as follows:

  1. First, select the cells in which we need the Strikethrough format.
  2. Now, use the Excel Strikethrough shortcut key, โ€œCtrl+5โ€. The data will strike out, as shown below.

Method #2 โ€“ Strikethrough Using Format Cell Option

The steps to Strikethrough using Format Cell Option are as follows:

  • Step 1:ย Select the cells that need this format, right-click on the cell, and choose the option of โ€œFormat Cellsโ€.
Strikethrough In Excel
  • Step 2:ย The โ€œFormat Cellsโ€ window opens. Here, go to the โ€œFontโ€ tab, check/tick the โ€œStrikethroughโ€ option, and click โ€œOK.โ€
Strikethrough Shortcut Excel Method 1-3

The output is shown below, i.e., the cells got the Strikethrough format.

Strikethrough Shortcut Excel Method 1-4

Method #3 โ€“ Strikethrough using from Quick Access Toolbar

Let us add the option, as it is not available in theย ribbon and in the Quick Access toolbar.

The steps to Strikethrough using from Quick Access Toolbar are as follows:

Strikethrough Method 2
  • Step 2:ย The โ€œExcel Optionsโ€ window appears.
    • On the left, select the โ€œQuick Access Toolbarโ€ option.
    • On the right, click the โ€œChoose commands from:โ€ option drop-down, and select the โ€œCommands Not in the Ribbonโ€ option.
Strikethrough Method 2-1
  • Step 3: Next, select the โ€œStrikethroughโ€ command, click โ€œAdd,โ€ and click โ€œOK.โ€
Strikethrough Method 2-2
  • Step 4:ย After the option is added, it will appear on the โ€œTitle Barโ€, as shown.
Strikethrough Method 2-3
  • Step 5: Select the data you want to Strikethrough, and click the โ€œStrikethroughโ€ option, as shown in the screenshot below.
Strikethrough Shortcut Excel Method 2-4
  • It will Strikethrough the selected cells, as shown below.
Strikethrough Shortcut Excel Method 2-4

Method #4 – Strikethrough using it fromย Excel Ribbon

The steps to Strikethrough using it from Excel Ribbon are as follows:

  • Step 1:ย Right-click the โ€œFontโ€ tab, and choose the โ€œCustomize the Ribbonโ€ option.
Strikethrough Method 4
  • Step 2:ย The โ€œExcel Optionsโ€ window appears.
    • On the left, select the โ€œQuick Access Toolbarโ€ option.
    • On the right, click the โ€œChoose commands from:โ€ option drop-down, and select the โ€œCommands Not in the Ribbonโ€ option.
    • Finally, select the โ€œStrikethroughโ€ option, click โ€œNew Tab,โ€ and click โ€œOK.โ€
Strikethrough Method 4-1
  • Step 3:ย After the option is added, a โ€œNew Tabโ€ tab appears in the ribbon, with only the โ€œStrikethroughโ€ group, as shown below.
Strikethrough Method 4-2

Step 4: Finally, select the cells you want to Strikethrough – go to the โ€œNew tabโ€ tab – click the โ€œStrikethroughโ€ from the โ€œNew Groupโ€. The output is shown below.

Strikethrough Shortcut Excel Method 4-3

Method #5 โ€“ Strikethrough using Dynamic Conditional Formatting

  • Step 1: Choose the range where we want to apply the conditional formatting, click the โ€œConditional Formattingโ€ option drop-down in the โ€œHomeโ€ tabโ€™s โ€œStylesโ€ group, and then click the โ€œNew Ruleโ€, as shown below.
Method 5
  • Step 2: Click onย โ€œUse a formula to determine which cells to formatโ€, insert the formula asย (=B2=โ€ Yesโ€), and then click โ€œFormat.โ€
Method 5-1

Step 3: The โ€œFormat Cellsโ€ window appears. Here, go to the โ€œFontโ€ tab, check/tick the โ€œStrikethroughโ€ option, and click โ€œOK.โ€

Method 5-2

Step 4: After the Conditional Formatting, Excel will automatically strike out the text, as shown below.

Strikethrough Shortcut Excel Method 5-3

Method #6 โ€“ Strikethrough Using VBA

We will create a Strikethrough command button using VBA.

The steps to Strikethrough using VBA are as follows:

  • Step 1 โ€“ย Choose theย โ€œCommand buttonโ€ย from theย โ€œInsertโ€ย command available in theย โ€œControlsโ€ย group under theย Developer tab excel.
Method 6 - Step 1
  • Step 2 โ€“ย Create the command button, and change theย โ€œPropertiesโ€, as shown in the images below.
Method 6 - Step 2
  • Step 3 โ€“ย Click โ€œView Codeโ€ย from theย โ€œControlsโ€ย group after closing the properties dialog box. (Ensure the button is selected andย โ€œDesign Modeโ€ย is activated.)
Method 6 - Step 3
  • Step 4 โ€“ย Chooseย โ€œStrikethroughโ€ย from the list.
Method 6 - Step 4

Now, paste the following VBA code.

Method 6 - Step 4- Code
  • Step 5 โ€“ย Save the file withย .xlsm

Suppose we want to Strikethrough two cells (A1 and A2). We can do the same by selecting the cells and pressing the command button (make sure theย โ€œDesign Modeโ€ย is deactivated).

Method 6 - Step 5

Select the cells, and click the button, to get the following output.

Method 6.gif

Important Things To Note

  • Strikethrough, when applied, does not change the value of the cell. For example, โ€œTEXTโ€ is the same as โ€œTEXTโ€ for Excel and formulas.
  • If we only want a certain part of the cell value to Strikethrough, we must select that part instead of the complete cell.
  • If we are using Conditional Formatting for Strikethrough, we should keep in mind that the reference of the range must not be an absolute or a relative range reference.
  • While adding the shortcut of the strike, we should keep in mind that we cannot edit the tabs that Excel creates. We cannot add this option to the โ€œFontโ€ tab, as this is a default tab that we cannot edit in any way.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Where is option Strikethrough Text in Excel?

Unlike MS Word, we do not have the Strikethrough in Excel in the Font group, by default. Therefore, we use the feature as follows:
a. Click the โ€œFormat Cellsโ€ launcher, shown by the yellow arrow.
b. The โ€œFormat Cellsโ€ window opens.
c. Under the โ€œFontโ€ menu, check/tick the โ€œStrikethroughโ€ checkbox in the โ€œEffectsโ€ option.
d. Click โ€œOKโ€.
Strikethrough In Excel FAQ 1.jpg

What methods open the Format Cells window to Strikethrough in Excel?

There are various methods to open the Format Cells window, namely,
โ€ข Method 1 Simply press the shortcut key โ€œCtrl+1โ€.
โ€ข Method 2 Select the โ€œHomeโ€ tab – go to the โ€œNumberโ€ group – click the โ€œNumber Formatโ€ option drop-down – select the last option โ€œMore Number Formatsโ€ฆโ€, as shown below.

Strikethrough In Excel FAQ 2-Method 2.jpg

โ€ข Method 3 Right-click on any cell, and select the โ€œFormat Cellsโ€ฆโ€ option from the list, as shown below.

Strikethrough In Excel FAQ 2-Method 3.jpg

ยทโ€ข Method 4 Select the โ€œHomeโ€ tab – go to the โ€œNumberโ€ group – click the โ€œNumber Formatโ€ box, i.e., the small box at the bottom right of the โ€œNumberโ€ group, as shown below.

Strikethrough In Excel FAQ 2-Method 4.jpg

Is there an Alternate way to Strikethrough in Excel?

Yes, there is an alternate way to convert decimal values to Strikethrough in Excel using the โ€œFormat Painterโ€ option.
For example, when we have multiple cell values to Strikethrough,
โ€ข First, select the cell value which has already has a Strikethrough format.
โ€ข Next, select the โ€œHomeโ€ tab – go to the โ€œClipboardโ€ group – click the โ€œFormat Painterโ€ option to copy the cell formatting, as shown below.

Strikethrough In Excel FAQ 3.jpg

โ€ข Finally, paste it to the cell with another cell value without the Strikethrough formatting. Repeat the same with the other cells too.

This article has been a guide to Strikethrough in Excel. Here we use Strikethrough using shortcut, QAT, customize ribbon, VBA, examples, downloadable excel template. You may learn more about Excel from the following articles: –