Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | macOS | Google Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Make the text bold | CtrlB | CommandB | CtrlB |
| Make the text italic | CtrlI | CommandI | CtrlI |
| Underline the text | CtrlU | CommandU | CtrlU |
| Strike through the text | Ctrl5 | CommandShiftX | AltShift5 |
| Open the Format Cells dialog | Ctrl1 | Command1 | No default Format ▸ Number |
| Apply a two-decimal number format | CtrlShift1 | ControlShift1 | CtrlShift1 |
| Apply a time format | CtrlShift2 | ControlShift2 | CtrlShift2 |
| Apply a date format | CtrlShift3 | ControlShift3 | CtrlShift3 |
| Apply a currency format | CtrlShift4 | ControlShift4 | CtrlShift4 |
| Apply a percentage format | CtrlShift5 | ControlShift5 | CtrlShift5 |
| Apply a scientific format | CtrlShift6 | ControlShift6 | CtrlShift6 |
| Go back to the General format | CtrlShift~ | ControlShift~ | No default Format ▸ Number ▸ Automatic |
| Fill the cell below from the cell above | CtrlD | CommandD | CtrlD |
| Fill the cell to the right from the cell on the left | CtrlR | CommandR | CtrlR |
When to use it
The keyboard wins on the formats you can see at a glance. A column of ratios arrives as 0.0714, and Ctrl + Shift + 5 makes it 7.14% in one press. No dialog opens and no decimals are lost. If you open the Format Cells dialog every day, the six Ctrl + Shift number formats are the fastest minute you will get back.
Ctrl + D and Ctrl + R are the fill keys, and they copy from the cell above or to the left. That matters when you have typed a formula whose references were chosen for dragging, because a fill down adjusts relative references the same way the fill handle does.
Checked against
Microsoft 365 Apps for Windows, version 2501, checked on 24 February 2026. Excel for Mac 16.91 on the same day, where the number-format keys use Control rather than Command. Google Sheets in Chrome 131, where the six number formats match Windows and the Format Cells dialog does not exist.
Practice
Practise it: Select to the edge of a block
Select to the edge of a block is the selection half of formatting: you cannot apply any key on this page until the right cells are selected.