Using autofill to fill a range

You can drag to automatically fill a range with a sequence of data. The range is filled based on the data entered in the cell or range.

About this task

When you automatically fill a range, the value in the cell that you drag is incremented or decremented by 1 in each subsequent cell in the column or row. Values in a range are extended according to whatever arithmetic pattern exists in the range. For example, if you drag a range where the values in cells increment by 2, in each new cell that you fill the value also increments by 2.

To autofill a range:

Procedure

  1. Select the cell or range containing the data that you want to base the sequence on.
  2. Drag the black indicator at the end of the cell or range, as follows:
    • To fill a column with values that increment the values in the original cell or range, drag the indicator down.
    • To fill a column with values that decrement the values in the original cell or range, drag the indicator up.
    • To fill a row with values that increment the values in the original cell or range, drag the indicator to the right.
    • To fill a row with values that decrement the values in the original cell or range, drag the indicator to the left.
    Tip: To delete the contents of a selected cell or range, drag the black indicator to the inside of the cell or range.

Results

After completing the steps, you see the following results:

  • The cells in the column or row are filled with the value or sequence of values, as well as the formatting, based on the original cell or range.
  • If the original cell or range contains text or a formula, the text or formula is copied to the cells you drag to. If the original cell or range contains a formula that includes absolute references, the references do not change as a result of using autofill.
  • If you span hidden rows or columns while using autofill, you see the data if you show the rows or columns later. However, if you span rows that have been removed by using Instant Filter, you do not see the data if you stop filtering those rows.