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How to add a row in Excel – 3 easy methods

Here are three easy ways.

Reviewed By: Kevin Pocock

Last Updated on July 11, 2024
Logo of Excel with a green color theme, featuring a large green square and a smaller square with an "x", against a purple background with "add row" text and a multi-colored symbol.
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Are you wondering how to insert rows in Excel? If yes, then we’ve got you covered.

Microsoft Excel has grown to become the most popular spreadsheet platform in the workspace. Because of the huge variety of extra functions and options it has built-in, it makes analyzing calculations and statistics far easier, with Excel often doing much of the work for you. With such a massive variety of features, however, it can sometimes be hard to find the most essential ones, which are often buried under a few menus and icons. This included adding rows in your spreadsheet.

To help you out, we’re going to explain the entire process of inserting rows in Excel using three easy methods.

1

Using the Insert option

This is the quickest way to insert a single or multiple rows in an Excel sheet, and the entire process will hardly take you a few seconds.

Step

1

Open your Excel sheet

First, open your Excel sheet. You can do this by clicking on the saved file or directly from within Excel.

Step

2

Select the row

Select and right click on the row above which you want to insert a new one.

Screenshot of an Excel spreadsheet displaying rows of data with headers including "model," "kan," "jenny," "kiver," "won," "ivy," and added row "cassie.
Row selected

Step

3

Select Insert

From the menu that will appear on your screen, click on ‘Insert.’

Screenshot of a computer screen displaying an open dropdown menu in Excel, with the "add row" option highlighted.
Insert option

Step

4

Add a new row

Now select ‘Entire row’ and click OK.

Screenshot of an Excel software menu with options for adding cells, highlighting the "entire row" option selected in a dialog box.
Insert options

Once done, Excel will add a row above the one you selected.

Spreadsheet in Excel displaying a table with model numbers and corresponding values under columns labeled with names like kan, jenny, kiver, won, ivy, and cassie.
New row added

To add more than one row, you need to select multiple rows and then right click on them to open the Insert box.

For example, if you want to insert two rows above 4, you need to select rows 4 and 5.

2

Using a keyboard shortcut

Alternatively, you can use a keyboard shortcut to add a row in Excel.

Step

1

Select a row

Open your Excel sheet and select a row above which you want to add a new row.

Step

2

Use the keyboard shortcut

Press CTRL + Shift + = on your keyboard and wait for the Insert menu to pop up on your screen.

Step

3

Select Entire row

Now, select ‘Entire row” and click ‘OK.’

3

Using the Home tab

The third and final way of adding rows is by using a Ribbon in the Home tab.

Step

1

Select any row

Open your sheet and select a row.

Step

2

Go to the Home tab

Usually, the Home tab is selected by default. But if it isn’t, it is the second tab in the main area, right next to ‘File.’

Step

3

Use the Ribbon

Now, click on ‘Insert’ and then select ‘Insert Sheet Rows.’

Screenshot of an Excel spreadsheet with data columns and rows, highlighting the "add row" button on the toolbar.
Insert Sheet Rows option

Once done, a new row will get added above the one you had previously selected.

Summary

Adding rows is an essential part of any graph or spreadsheet, and luckily, it is incredibly easy to insert in Excel, just requiring a few clicks and menus. This not only makes it easy to start and set up a graph, keeping it nice and tidy, but it can also be an efficient way to fill in any gaps quickly or prepare in advance for any further findings or statistics that may appear.

Learn more about Excel through these guides:

Kevin is the Editor of PC Guide. He has a broad interest and enthusiasm for consumer electronics, PCs and all things consumer tech - and more than 15 years experience in tech journalism.