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 โFormat Cellsโ tab while right-clicking on it or from the Excel keyboard shortcut โCTRL + 1โ from the numeric tab of the keyboard. The process is the same for removing a Strikethrough.
For example, we will apply Excel Strikethrough to cell A1, which has the value 123.

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., โCtrl+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 โCtrl+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.
- Using Excel Shortcut Key.
- Using Format Cell Options.
- Using from Quick Access Toolbar.
- Using it fromย Excel Ribbon.
- Using Dynamic Conditional Formatting.
- 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:
- First, select the cells in which we need the Strikethrough format.

- Now, use the Excel Strikethrough shortcut key, โCtrl+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 โFormat Cellsโ.

- Step 2:ย The โFormat Cellsโ window opens. Here, go to the โFontโ tab, check/tick the โStrikethroughโ option, and click โOK.โ

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

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:
- Step 1: Right-click anywhere on the ribbon, and select the Customize Quick Access Toolbar.

- Step 2:ย The โExcel Optionsโ window appears.
- On the left, select the โQuick Access Toolbarโ option.
- On the right, click the โChoose commands from:โ option drop-down, and select the โCommands Not in the Ribbonโ option.

- Step 3: Next, select the โStrikethroughโ command, click โAdd,โ and click โOK.โ

- Step 4:ย After the option is added, it will appear on the โTitle Barโ, as shown.

- Step 5: Select the data you want to Strikethrough, and click the โStrikethroughโ option, as shown in the screenshot below.

- It will Strikethrough the selected cells, as shown below.

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 โFontโ tab, and choose the โCustomize the Ribbonโ option.

- Step 2:ย The โExcel Optionsโ window appears.
- On the left, select the โQuick Access Toolbarโ option.
- On the right, click the โChoose commands from:โ option drop-down, and select the โCommands Not in the Ribbonโ option.
- Finally, select the โStrikethroughโ option, click โNew Tab,โ and click โOK.โ

- Step 3:ย After the option is added, a โNew Tabโ tab appears in the ribbon, with only the โStrikethroughโ group, as shown below.

Step 4: Finally, select the cells you want to Strikethrough – go to the โNew tabโ tab – click the โStrikethroughโ from the โNew Groupโ. The output is shown below.

Method #5 โ Strikethrough using Dynamic Conditional Formatting
- Step 1: Choose the range where we want to apply the conditional formatting, click the โConditional Formattingโ option drop-down in the โHomeโ tabโs โStylesโ group, and then click the โNew Ruleโ, as shown below.

- Step 2: Click onย โUse a formula to determine which cells to formatโ, insert the formula asย (=B2=โ Yesโ), and then click โFormat.โ

Step 3: The โFormat Cellsโ window appears. Here, go to the โFontโ tab, check/tick the โStrikethroughโ option, and click โOK.โ

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

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 โย Choose theย โCommand buttonโย from theย โInsertโย command available in theย โControlsโย group under theย Developer tab excel.

- Step 2 โย Create the command button, and change theย โPropertiesโ, as shown in the images below.

- Step 3 โย Click โView Codeโย from theย โControlsโย group after closing the properties dialog box. (Ensure the button is selected andย โDesign Modeโย is activated.)

- Step 4 โย Chooseย โStrikethroughโย from the list.

Now, paste the following VBA code.

- Step 5 โย 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 โDesign Modeโย is deactivated).

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

Important Things To Note
- Strikethrough, when applied, does not change the value of the cell. For example, โTEXTโ is the same as โ
TEXTโ 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 โFontโ 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 โFormat Cellsโ launcher, shown by the yellow arrow.
b. The โFormat Cellsโ window opens.
c. Under the โFontโ menu, check/tick the โStrikethroughโ checkbox in the โEffectsโ option.
d. Click โOKโ.
What methods open the Format Cells window to Strikethrough in Excel?
There are various methods to open the Format Cells window, namely,
โข Method 1 – Simply press the shortcut key โCtrl+1โ.
โข Method 2 – Select the โHomeโ tab – go to the โNumberโ group – click the โNumber Formatโ option drop-down – select the last option โMore Number Formatsโฆโ, as shown below.

โข Method 3 – Right-click on any cell, and select the โFormat Cellsโฆโ option from the list, as shown below.

ยทโข Method 4 – Select the โHomeโ tab – go to the โNumberโ group – click the โNumber Formatโ box, i.e., the small box at the bottom right of the โNumberโ group, as shown below.

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 โFormat Painterโ option.
For example, when we have multiple cell values to Strikethrough,
โข First, select the cell value which has already has a Strikethrough format.
โข Next, select the โHomeโ tab – go to the โClipboardโ group – click the โFormat Painterโ option to copy the cell formatting, as shown below.

โข Finally, paste it to the cell with another cell value without the Strikethrough formatting. Repeat the same with the other cells too.
Recommended Articles
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