How to use drag and drop in Excel

Another way to duplicate or move data in Excel is to use drag and drop. Drag and drop is an elegant alternative to using copy and paste. It can save you a few steps, but it requires a little more dexterity.

Let's take a look.

To move some information in Excel using drag and drop, first select the cells you'd like to move. Next, hover over the edge of the selection until you see the cursor change to a symbol with four arrows. Then, just drag the selection to a new location. When you release the mouse, the contents of the cells are moved to the new location.

To copy information with drag and drop, the approach is very similar. Select the cells you'd like to copy and hover over the edge of the selection. When you see the cursor change to the four arrows, hold down the control key until you see the cursor change again into a plus symbol. Then, while holding down the control key, drag the selection to where you'd like to copy the data. When you release the mouse, the contents of the cells are copied to the new location.

You can also use drag and drop with entire columns and rows.