How to Merge Cells in Excel

A heading needs to sit across several columns, or a label needs to span a few rows. Merging joins the selected cells into one larger cell.

Select the cells to merge

Click and drag across the cells. They must form a rectangle. Only the value in the top-left cell is kept. Excel warns you before it discards anything else, so move any other content out of the way first.

Click Merge & Center

Go to Home, and in the Alignment group click Merge & Center. The cells become one cell and the text is centered inside it. On Windows you can also press Alt, then H, M, C in sequence. On a Mac, use the Home tab button.

Pick a different merge if needed

Click the arrow next to Merge & Center for three more options:

• Merge Across merges each selected row on its own, giving one wide cell per row.
• Merge Cells joins everything into one cell and leaves the alignment alone.
• Unmerge Cells splits a merged cell back into its parts.

Unmerge the cells

Select the merged cell and click Merge & Center again to toggle it off, or choose Unmerge Cells from the arrow. The content stays in the top-left cell and the other cells come back empty.

If the merge is only for a centered heading. Select the cells, press Ctrl + 1 (Command + 1 on a Mac), open the Alignment tab, set Horizontal to Center Across Selection, and click OK. The heading looks the same, but the cells stay separate, so sorting, filtering, copying, and selecting whole columns keep working. Merged cells break all four.

If Merge & Center is grayed out. The sheet is protected or the cells are part of a Table. Use Review, Unprotect Sheet, or click inside the Table and choose Table Design, Convert to Range, then try again.