Excel library

How to Move Columns in Excel (4 Easy Ways)

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How to Move Columns in Excel featured image showing a sales table with the Sales column moved to column B

You get a report where the column you care about sits at the far right, or a template that puts Region before Sales when your boss wants it the other way round. Moving a column means shifting all its cells to a new position while the other columns slide over to make room, without overwriting anything.

Excel has no single "Move Column" button, but it offers several quick ways to do it. In this tutorial, I'll show you how to move columns in Excel using drag and drop, cut and insert, sorting, and a formula.

Quick answer
  1. Click the column letter to select the whole column.
  2. Hover over the edge of the selection until the cursor turns into a four-headed arrow.
  3. Hold Shift, drag the column to its new position, and release the mouse before you release Shift.

If dragging feels fiddly, use cut and Insert Cut Cells from Method 2 instead.

Our data is in A1:D7: names in column A, regions in B, sales in C and units in D. In most examples we want Sales to sit right after Name, before Region.

Sales table in A1:D7 with Name, Region, Sales and Units columns, with the Sales column C highlighted
The starting table: Sales sits in column C, after Region

Method 1: Using Shift and Drag to Move Columns in Excel

This is the fastest way to move one column, or a block of side-by-side columns, a short distance.

  1. Click the column letter C to select the Sales column.
  2. Move the pointer to the left or right edge of the selection until it becomes a four-headed arrow.
  3. Press and hold Shift.
  4. Drag to the left. A thick green line shows where the column will land. Stop when it sits between columns A and B.
  5. Release the mouse button first, then release Shift.

Sales is now in column B, and Region and Units each shift one column to the right.

Table after Shift-dragging the Sales column, now in column B between Name and Region
After Shift + drag, Sales moves to column B and Region shifts right to C

How this works

A normal drag moves cells on top of whatever is already there. Holding Shift changes it to an insert, so Excel opens a gap at the green line and pushes the other columns aside. Formulas that refer to the moved cells update automatically.

Note: If you forget to hold Shift, Excel asks "There's already data here. Do you want to replace it?" Click Cancel and try again with Shift held down.

Method 2: Using Cut and Insert Cut Cells

Use this when the column has to travel far, for example from column Z to column B, where dragging means scrolling. This time we move Units from column D to column B.

  1. Right-click the column letter D and choose Cut, or select the column and press Ctrl+X.
  2. Right-click the column letter B. The cut column will land to the left of this column.
  3. Choose Insert Cut Cells from the menu.

Units moves into column B, and Region and Sales shift right to C and D.

Table after cutting the Units column and using Insert Cut Cells on column B, with Units now in column B
Insert Cut Cells places Units in column B and pushes the other columns right

Keyboard-only version

Select a cell in column D, press Ctrl+Space to select the whole column, and press Ctrl+X. Click any cell in column B, press Ctrl+Space again, and then press Ctrl+Shift+Plus (Ctrl+Shift+=) to insert the cut column there. If you use cut often, our guide to the keyboard shortcut to cut a cell in Excel covers it in more detail.

How this works

Cut marks the column with a moving dotted border but does not remove anything yet. Insert Cut Cells then removes the column from its old spot and inserts it at the new one in one step. If you choose Paste instead, Excel overwrites column B rather than inserting.

Method 3: Using Sort Left to Right to Rearrange Many Columns

When you need to reorder many columns at once, moving them one by one is slow. Instead, number the columns in the order you want and let Excel sort them sideways.

  1. Insert a blank row above the headers, so the table now runs from A2 to D8.
  2. In row 1, type the position each column should end up in: 1 for Name, 3 for Region, 2 for Sales and 4 for Units.
  3. Select A1:D8, then go to Data and click Sort.
  4. Click Options, select Sort left to right, and click OK.
  5. Set Sort by to Row 1 and Order to Smallest to Largest, then click OK.
  6. Delete row 1 once the columns are in place.
Helper row 1 with order numbers 1, 3, 2, 4 above the Name, Region, Sales and Units headers in A2:D8
Order numbers in row 1 tell Excel where each column should go

After the sort, row 1 reads 1, 2, 3, 4 and the headers read Name, Sales, Region, Units.

Table after sorting left to right by row 1, with columns now in the order Name, Sales, Region, Units
After sorting left to right by row 1, the columns follow the order numbers

How this works

A normal sort reorders rows by the values in one column. Sort left to right does the same thing sideways: it reorders whole columns by the values in one row. Because row 1 holds the positions you typed, the columns end up in exactly that order.

Note: Select only the table, not whole rows. If the selection includes columns you did not number, Excel sorts the blank cells to the end and can move columns you meant to leave alone.

Method 4: Using the CHOOSECOLS Function

Use this when you want a reordered copy of the table and need to keep the original as it is, for example on a report sheet. CHOOSECOLS is available in Microsoft 365 and Excel 2024.

  1. Select cell F1.
  2. Type the formula below.
  3. Press Enter.
fxFormula
=CHOOSECOLS(A1:D7,1,3,2,4)
CHOOSECOLS formula in F1 spilling a copy of the table into F1:I7 with Sales moved before Region
CHOOSECOLS in F1 returns a reordered copy of the table in F1:I7

How this works

CHOOSECOLS takes a range and a list of column numbers, and returns those columns in the order you list them. Here 1, 3, 2, 4 means Name, Sales, Region, Units. The result spills into F1:I7 and updates whenever the source data changes.

Note: The spilled copy is a formula result, so you cannot edit single cells in it. To get plain values, copy F1:I7 and use Paste Values.

FAQs

Will moving a column break my formulas?

No. Shift + drag and Insert Cut Cells both update formulas that refer to the moved cells. For more on this, see how to move cells in Excel without changing a formula.

Can I move several columns at once?

Yes, if they are next to each other. Select them all by dragging across the column letters, then use Shift + drag or Insert Cut Cells. Columns that are not next to each other cannot be cut together, so move them one at a time or use the sort method.

Why does Excel say "This action won't work on multiple selections"?

You selected columns that are not next to each other, for example with Ctrl held down. Cut works only on one continuous block.

Do these methods work inside an Excel table?

Yes. Select the table column, including its header, and use Shift + drag or Insert Cut Cells. Moving a column only within a table does not affect columns outside it.

How do I move columns in a pivot table?

Pivot tables follow their own field layout, so these steps do not apply. See how to move columns in an Excel pivot table.

Conclusion

For one column moving a short distance, Shift + drag is the quickest, and it is the method I would use most of the time. Use cut and Insert Cut Cells when the column has a long way to go, and sort left to right when you need to reorder many columns at once. Choose CHOOSECOLS when the original layout has to stay untouched.