Filling cells with vibrant colors is extremely easy to do, but Excel also has advanced options that allow you to use your Format Cell dialog box to pattern and shade these colors as well. This Excel tutorial will show you how to use these features to your advantage. You will learn Excel the easy way and be able to implement advanced coloring into your worksheets.
Before we can do anything, you will need to click on a single cell or highlight a group of cells that you wish to work in. Once this is done, you need to bring up the Format Cell dialog box. Go to the Home tab in your Excel toolbar. From there you will be able to find the Font box, which has a small downward-facing arrow in the bottom right-hand corner. Click on this and then click on the Fill tab in the new window:
Cell Fill Pattern
On the right hand-side of the Fill tab of the Format Cells dialog box, you have the option to choose a pattern color and style. Click on the arrow beside Pattern Color and choose the color you wish to use. Then click the arrow next to Pattern Style and choose the one that you will put into your worksheet. Finally, click OK and Excel will perform the task for you. Here is an example of what the different patterns will look like in action:
Cell Fill Gradient
Underneath the Background Color section of the Fill tab on the Format Cells dialog box, you will see a button that says Fill Effects… When you click on it, a new window will appear that looks like this:
The formula is shown here: =MOD (ROW ,2)=0. Note: If you want to apply shading to alternate columns instead of alternate rows, enter =MOD (COLUMN ,2)=0 instead. On the worksheet, do one of the following: To apply the shading to a specific range of cells, select the cells you want to format. To apply the shading to the entire worksheet. The shade of the color represents the value in the cell. To add a color scale, execute the following steps. On the Home tab, in the Styles group, click Conditional Formatting. Click Color Scales and click a subtype. Explanation: by default, for 3-Color scales, Excel calculates the 50th percentile (also known as median. Choose the rule type “Format only cells that contain”. In the “Format only cells with” section, select “Cell Value” in the first drop-down box and “less than” from the second drop down. Write 50000 in the value field. Click “Format” to display the Format Cells dialog box, choose the format as per your liking. But notice the cells that have the gradient applied as a paragraph shading: the gradients do not extend across the entire table, but are contained within the cell! Once your gradient paragraph shading is set up, you can apply gradients to your table cells with a single click.
How To Apply Color Gradient Across Multiple Cells
You can choose two colors and merge them together, giving a stunning shading effect. At the top, click on the little arrow next to Color 1 and pick one. Then click on Color 2 and choose the next one. In the bottom right-hand corner under Sample, you can see an example of what you are creating.
Color Gradient Across Multiple Cells Excel File
Re: Gradient Across Cells. No gradient fill for cells. You could use a shape and link the shapes text property to the underlying cell. Obviously editing the cell directly is a pain as the shape obscures it.
Under Shading Styles, you can choose the style you want. It will show you what the option will do under Variants. There are six options available and once you have chosen one, click OK. It will take you back to the Format Cell dialog box where you can preview your choice at the bottom (under Sample). If you like the effect, then click OK on this window as well. Excel will automatically create gradients in your highlighted cells. Here are examples of what each option will look like:
Excel Color Gradient Across Multiple Cells
If you wish to remove any of this formatting, simply click on the No Fill option on the Fill Color drop-down menu found in the Font box on the Home tab:
Color Gradient Across Multiple Cells Excel Template
Now that you understand how to fill cells with colors, patterns and gradients; there is nothing stopping you from creating extremely professional-looking spreadsheets that will be the envy of all. After several students from our Excel training courses in South Florida recommended it, we have written this article to enlighten people about these unknown features. For more information on exactly how to use all the Excel functions to your advantage, please watch our Excel video tutorials.