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Quick Way to Copy Comments to Multiple Excel Cells

BY STANLEY ZAROWIN

Please note: This item is from our archives and was published in 2009. It is provided for historical reference. The content may be out of date and links may no longer function.

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When I review a client’s numbers in an Excel spreadsheet, I frequently add comments in many of the cells, and many of the comments are the same—such as “Looks Good!” Is there any way I can copy them, in one fell swoop, so I don’t have to type the same message over and over?

Probably the easiest way in Excel 2003 and 2007 is to copy one cell that contains the message (Ctrl+C) and then, if the other cells are contiguous, highlight them; if they are not, hold down the Ctrl key and highlight each one. Then right-click, bringing up the Paste Special menu. Click on Comments and OK.

As you can see in the screenshot below, only the comments are copied—not the data in the cells.

Caution: Any comments placed earlier in the cell will be overwritten.