2.1 AutoFill and Fill Series
In short: The fill handle is the small square at the bottom-right of the selected cell.
The fill handle is the small square at the bottom-right of the selected cell. Drag it (or double-click it) to continue a pattern.
| You type | Drag gives | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 1, 2 (select both) | 3, 4, 5… | Two cells define the step |
| 14-03-2026 | 15-03-2026, 16-03-2026… | Days |
| Mon | Tue, Wed… | Built-in list |
| Jan | Feb, Mar… | Built-in list |
| Store-01 | Store-02, Store-03… | Number at the end increments |
| A formula | Same formula, references adjusted | See 1.3 |
About this data: Teaching sample for a fictional shop “Orbit Logistics”. Figures and names (e.g. Aamir Khan) are made up for this lesson on autofill and fill series.
After dragging, click the Auto Fill Options button to choose Copy Cells, Fill Series, Fill Formatting Only, Fill Without Formatting, Fill Weekdays, Fill Months.
Steps in Excel
- Series dialog: type 14-03-2026 in A2 › select A2:A32 › Home › Editing › Fill › Series… › Columns, Date, Weekday, Step 1 › OK (fills only working days).
- Double-click fill: if the column to the left has data, double-clicking the fill handle copies down to the last row automatically.
- Custom list: File › Options › Advanced › General › Edit Custom Lists… › type
Pune, Solapur, Nashik, Sambhaji Nagar, Kolhapur, Nagpur› Add. Now typing Pune and dragging fills all six cities.
Worked example. Amir prepares a Ganeshotsav sales tracker. He types 14-09-2026 and uses Fill › Series with step 1 and stop value 25-09-2026 to list every day of the festival period. Next to it he drags the city custom list.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip
Many students type a single number (for example 1) and drag it, and then every cell shows 1. If you want a series, select two values (1, 2) and drag, or hold Ctrl while dragging. After dragging, always look at the Auto Fill Options button.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – मराठी
बरेच students एकच number (उदाहरणार्थ 1) type करून drag करतात आणि मग सगळे 1 च येतात. Series हवी असेल तर दोन values (1, 2) select करून drag करा, किंवा Ctrl दाबून drag करा. Drag केल्यावर Auto Fill Options button नक्की बघा.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – हिंदी
बहुत से students एक ही number (जैसे 1) type करके drag करते हैं और फिर सब जगह 1 ही आ जाता है. Series चाहिए तो दो values (1, 2) select करके drag करो, या Ctrl दबाकर drag करो. Drag करने के बाद Auto Fill Options button ज़रूर देखो.
Practice task
Create a column of all working days (Mon–Fri) in October 2026 using Fill › Series. Add a custom list of the six cities and use it to fill a header row.
Loading practice tasks...
- Count the orders (Easy): How many orders are in the Order ID column?
- Last date in the series (Easy): What is the latest date in the Order date column?
- Total amount (Easy): Add up the Amount (£) column.
- Days covered (Easy): How many days are there from the first Order date to the last one?
- Orders in week 1 (Medium): How many orders are in Week 1?
- Amount in week 2 (Medium): What is the total Amount (£) for Week 2?
- Next ID in the series (Medium): Build the next Order ID after the last row. It should look like "ORD-1011".
- Date of the 5th order (Medium): Without looking it up, work out the date of the 5th order: the first Order date plus 4 days.
- Amount for ORD-1007 (Medium): Find the Amount (£) for Order ID "ORD-1007".
- Check the series has no gaps (Hard): Return "No gaps" if the days covered equal the number of orders minus 1, else "Gap found".
- Average order in week 1 (Hard): What is the average Amount (£) for Week 1? Round to 1 decimal.
- Weekday number of the first order (Hard): What weekday number is the first Order date? Use the Monday = 1 system.
Worked example — autofill and fill series
Why
Sana Sheikh in Pune and Carlos Rivera abroad both need a clear, repeatable way to use autofill and fill series on a Orbit Logistics sheet without breaking totals.
What
Autofill And Fill Series is the Excel idea this page teaches. We will walk one tiny example end to end.
How
- Open a blank sheet. In A1 type a short label for autofill and fill series.
- Enter a small made-up value for Sana Sheikh using $ where money appears.
- Add a second value for Carlos Rivera using € so you see mixed currencies stay numeric.
- Apply the method from this lesson step by step (menu or formula as shown above).
- Check the result still works inside SUM or a simple check cell.
Formula / action
Follow the formula or ribbon steps shown in this lesson (keep values numeric).Meaning: Once autofill and fill series is correct on one row, copy the same pattern down the column.
Quick revision cards
Three standalone cards. Each one explains the idea with its own example. Scan the QR to open this lesson.
