How to move and copy worksheets in Excel

In this lesson, we'll look at how to move and copy worksheets in the same workbook. This allows you to put worksheets into a sequence that makes sense and to duplicate worksheets when needed.

Let's take a look.

Here we have a workbook that contains several sheets. Let's rearrange these worksheets into alphabetical order. To move a worksheet, just click on the tab with your mouse and drag the sheet to a new location.

Excel will display a small black triangle to let you know exactly where the new sheet will be placed. To complete the move, just release the mouse. The worksheet tab will appear at the new location.

Now let's copy the blue worksheet.

To copy, or duplicate a worksheet, follow the same process, but hold down the control key. Excel will display a small plus symbol inside the cursor icon to indicate that the sheet will be copied instead of moved.

When you release the mouse, the sheet will appear at the new location, renamed to prevent duplicate names. The new worksheet is a complete copy of the original worksheet and contains all data and formatting.

You can also move and copy worksheets by right-clicking. Right-click a tab and choose "Move or copy" from the menu. Excel will then display a list of all worksheets in the workbook.

To move a worksheet, select a worksheet in the list to indicate a new location. When you click OK, Excel will place the moved worksheet in front of the selected worksheet. You can also move worksheets to the end of the list.

To copy a worksheet by right-clicking, follow the same process. In the Move or Copy dialog box, use the "Create a copy" checkbox. The copied worksheet will appear at the new location with a new name.