How to Change the Direction of the Pointer After Pressing Enter

In Microsoft Excel, by default, when your press the Enter key after entering data into a cell, the cell pointer will automatically move down one cell. You can change this setting to move left, up, or right instead of down. (Images can be clicked on to enlarge them.)

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Microsoft Excel

1. Open Excel and an existing or new workbook. The directions that follow are for Excel 2007. Directions for Excel 2003 are provided in brackets.
2. Office Button Click the Microsoft Office Button (2a in the image) and then click the Excel Options (2b) button. The Excel Options dialog box will open.
   
   [Excel 2003: Tools, Options, Edit tab.]
3. Advanced Editing Options Click on Advanced in the left menu. On the right, under “Editing options,” with the box checked next to “After pressing Enter, move selection”, click the down arrow and choose the direction that you would like cell selection to move when you press the enter key.
   
   [Excel 2003: On the Edit tab, check the box next to “Move selection after Enter”, and then choose the direction.]