SPREADSHEET TIPS & TRICKS: The F5 Key (Part 1 of 2)

What does the F5 key do?

The F5 key brings up the Go To... dialogue box. This is useful for financial modellers who like to use named cells or cell ranges. It is a quick way to bring up a list of all named cells or cell ranges within Excel files. Equally if one is auditing another's spreadsheet and would like to check what named cells or cell ranges the original modeller has used, if any, then the F5 key offers a quick way to do so.

In the pictoral example, below, the modeller has many cell ranges and the F5 key is an easy way to view which names have been allocated to which cells or cell ranges. If the modeller has forgotten which cells each range refers to, they can simply double click an item on the list and Excel will highlight the relevant cell on the relevant tab within the Excel file.

Try it. See if any of the Excel models or spreadsheets used in your team use named cell ranges. Open the file and hit the F5 key. Double click an item on the list that appears (if any) and watch how Excel navigates you to the relevant tab and highlights the cell(s). In Part 2, we explore the useful functions hidden under the Special... button...