Excel strikethrough shortcut: Ctrl + 5 (and Cmd + Shift + X on a Mac)

To cross out text in Excel on Windows, select the cells and press Ctrl + 5. Press it again to remove the line. On a Mac, the shortcut is Cmd + Shift + X. The value in the cell does not change: strikethrough is only formatting, so formulas that use the cell keep working.

Quick reference

Use the 5 in the row of numbers above the letters. The 5 on the number pad does not work for this shortcut.

Strike through cells, rows or a whole list

1. Select the cells. To select a whole row first, press Shift + Space; for a column, Ctrl + Space.
2. Press Ctrl + 5.

The shortcut works as a switch. If some of the selected cells already have a line and others do not, the first press usually applies strikethrough to all of them, and the second press removes it from all of them.

To repeat it on cells that are not next to each other, cross out the first cell, then click the next one and press F4, which repeats your last action.

Strike through only part of a cell

Strikethrough does not have to cover the whole cell. To cross out one word:

1. Double-click the cell, or select it and press F2, to edit it.
2. Select the word or characters with the mouse, or with Shift and the arrow keys.
3. Press Ctrl + 1. While you are editing a cell, this opens a Format Cells window with only the font settings.
4. Tick Strikethrough and click OK.

This works only on typed text. If the cell contains a formula, Excel can format the whole cell but not part of the result.

Strikethrough with the menu

The Home tab in Excel does not have a strikethrough button by default, unlike Word. Use the Format Cells window instead:

1. Select the cells.
2. Press Ctrl + 1, or right-click and choose Format Cells.
3. On the Font tab, tick Strikethrough under Effects.
4. Click OK.

Add a strikethrough button

If you prefer clicking, put the button on the Quick Access Toolbar:

1. Click the small arrow at the end of the Quick Access Toolbar and choose More Commands.
2. In Choose commands from, pick All Commands.
3. Find Strikethrough, click Add, then OK.

The button stays there for every workbook. Once it is on the toolbar, it also gets an Alt shortcut: press Alt and Excel shows the number to press next.

Cross out tasks automatically when they are done

For a to-do list, Excel can add the line for you when a task is ticked off.

1. Put checkboxes in column A. In Microsoft 365, select the cells and choose Insert, Checkbox. In older versions, type TRUE or FALSE, or "done", in that column instead.
2. Select the task list, for example A2:B20.
3. On the Home tab, choose Conditional Formatting, New Rule, then Use a formula to determine which cells to format.
4. Enter the formula =$A2=TRUE (or =$A2="done" if you type "done").
5. Click Format, tick Strikethrough on the Font tab, and pick a grey colour if you like.
6. Click OK twice.

Now ticking a box crosses out the whole row, and unticking it removes the line. The dollar sign before A keeps every row looking at its own checkbox.

Why Ctrl + 5 does nothing

• You used the number pad. Only the 5 above the letters works.
• The keyboard layout uses a different key. On some layouts, such as German or French, Ctrl + 5 may be taken by the system or a language switcher. Ctrl + 1 and the Font tab always work.
• The sheet is protected. Formatting is blocked on protected sheets unless the owner allowed it. Check Review, Unprotect Sheet.
• Another program has taken the shortcut. Some screen recorders and keyboard tools use Ctrl + 5. Close them and try again.

The same thing in other apps

Google Sheets uses different keys from Excel, which trips up many people who use both. Our guide to strikethrough in Google Sheets covers it step by step.

Common questions

Does strikethrough change the value or break formulas?

No. It is formatting only, like bold or a fill colour. A crossed-out number still counts in a SUM. If you want crossed-out items left out of a total, add a status column (for example "done") and use SUMIF on that column instead.

Does Ctrl + 5 work in Excel for the web?

Yes. In Excel in a browser, Ctrl + 5 applies strikethrough the same way as in the desktop app.

Can I strike through text on Excel for iPhone or Android?

Yes. Select the cells, open the Home menu, and look for the strikethrough option among the font formatting buttons. There is no keyboard shortcut on a phone without a keyboard attached.

How do I find all crossed-out cells?

Press Ctrl + F, click Options, then Format, tick Strikethrough on the Font tab, and click Find All. Excel lists every cell with the line, and Ctrl + A in the results selects them all.

More time-savers, such as Alt + = for AutoSum and Ctrl + ; for today's date, are in our Excel shortcuts cheat sheet, with a free printable PDF. To add rows from the keyboard, see the Excel insert row shortcut.