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Excel Basics for Beginners: Workbook, Sheets, Cells, AutoFill and Date Series

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This is your first hands-on Excel chapter. We open Excel, create a workbook for an Instagram-style project, save it as insta, and make one sheet each for Users, Reels and Posts. Then we learn the parts of the screen, how big one sheet really is, and the most useful beginner skill of all: AutoFill. With one drag you can fill 1 to 100, a multiplication table, a whole month of dates, the months of a year or the days of the week. Keep Excel open and do every step with me.

What you'll learn in this chapter

  • Open Excel and create a blank workbook
  • Type a first table and save it as insta
  • Rename sheets: Users, Reels, Posts
  • Tabs, ribbon, Name Box and Formula Bar
  • Rows, columns, cells and sheet limits
  • AutoFill: copy, series, gaps, reverse
  • Multiplication tables in one drag
  • Fix ##### and widen many columns at once
  • Fill dates, months, days, times and text

Practice file: excel-basics-practice.xlsx has every example from this chapter, plus empty "Your turn" areas.

1. Open Excel and create a blank workbook

Why: every Excel project starts with a file. That file is called a workbook.

How (Windows):

  1. Press the Windows key or click Start.
  2. Type excel.
  3. Click Excel in the results.
  4. On the start screen, click Blank workbook.

On a Mac, open Excel from Launchpad or the Applications folder, then choose Blank Workbook.

What you see: an empty grid with Sheet1 at the bottom-left. The title at the top says Book1, the temporary name of a new workbook that has not been saved yet.

  1. A workbook is the whole Excel file.
  2. A worksheet (or just sheet) is one page inside the workbook.
  3. One workbook can hold many sheets.

2. Type your first table

Why: data in Excel is almost always kept as a table: one header row, then one row per record. This is the same idea as the tables inside Instagram or Flipkart.

How: in Sheet1, type the headers and two records:

  1. Click cell A1 and type id. Press Tab to move right.
  2. In B1 type name, press Tab. In C1 type city, press Tab. In D1 type age, and press Enter.
  3. In row 2 type 1001, Rani, Pune, 24.
  4. In row 3 type 1002, Ravindra Bagale, Solapur, 32.
  5. In row 4 type 1003, Zoya, Mumbai, 27.

Tab moves one cell to the right; Enter moves down. That is the fastest way to type a table row by row.

The same simple layout is used everywhere in business: a car showroom lists every car sold, and a builder tracks the sale of all 500 flats in a project, one flat per row.

3. Save the workbook as insta

How:

  1. Press Ctrl+S (on Mac, Cmd+S), or click File › Save.
  2. Excel suggests the name Book1. Click Browse (or More options) to choose a place.
  3. Choose This PC › Desktop.
  4. In File name, type insta.
  5. Click Save.

The title bar now shows insta.xlsx. .xlsx is the normal Excel file type.

Ravindra Bagale's Tip

Save the file right after creating it, not at the end. If Excel or your laptop shuts down before the first save, everything in "Book1" is gone. After the first save, keep pressing Ctrl+S every few minutes; it becomes a habit within a week.

4. Rename sheets and add new ones

Why: an app like Instagram keeps users, reels and posts in separate tables. In Excel, each kind of data gets its own sheet in the same workbook.

How:

  1. Double-click the Sheet1 tab at the bottom.
  2. Type Users and press Enter.
  3. Click the + button next to the tabs. A new sheet appears.
  4. Double-click it, type Reels and press Enter.
  5. Click + again, and rename the new sheet Posts.
  6. Press Ctrl+S to save.

You can also right-click a tab and choose Rename, Delete or Tab Color.

insta.xlsx = one workbook (one file) Worksheet: Users A B C 1 id name city 2 1001 Rani Pune 3 1002 Raja Nashik 4 1003 Zoya Mumbai Users Worksheet: Reels A B C 1 id userid caption 2 1 1001 Sunset at Pune 3 2 1003 Marine Drive 4 3 1001 Vada pav! Reels Worksheet: Posts A B C 1 id userid images 2 1 1002 3 3 2 1001 1 4 3 1003 5 Posts Workbook = the whole file. Worksheet = one page (tab) inside it. Rule of thumb: one workbook per project or app, one sheet per kind of data.

Figure 1. One workbook file, insta.xlsx, with three worksheets: Users, Reels and Posts.

Rule of thumb: one workbook per project (or app), one sheet per kind of data.

Ravindra Bagale's Tip

Give sheets short, clear names like Users, Sales_2026 or Stock. Avoid leaving "Sheet1, Sheet2, Sheet3". When you write formulas that use other sheets later, a clear name tells you at once where the data comes from.

5. The parts of the Excel window

insta.xlsx - Excel File Home Insert Draw Page Layout Formulas Data Review View Clipboard Font Alignment Number Styles Cells Editing B3 fx Ravindra Bagale A B C D E F G 1 id name city age 2 1001 Rani Pune 24 3 1002 Ravindra Bagale Solapur 32 4 1003 Zoya Mumbai 27 5 6 7 8 9 Users Reels Posts + 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Parts of the Excel window 1 Title bar: the file (workbook) name 2 Tabs: File, Home, Insert, Draw ... 3 Ribbon: buttons of the selected tab 4 Name Box: address of the active cell 5 Formula Bar: what is inside the cell 6 Column letters: A, B, C ... 7 Row numbers: 1, 2, 3 ... 8 Active cell: B3, with the fill handle 9 Sheet tabs: Users, Reels, Posts, +

Figure 2. The parts of the Excel window, numbered 1 to 9.

  1. Title bar: shows the workbook name, here insta.xlsx.
  2. Tabs: File, Home, Insert, Draw, Page Layout, Formulas, Data, Review, View. Some people call them menus.
  3. Ribbon: the big strip of buttons under the tabs. The buttons change when you click a different tab. Home has the everyday buttons: font, alignment, number format, and so on.
  4. Name Box: at the left, above column A. It shows the address of the selected cell, for example B3.
  5. Formula Bar: next to the fx sign. It shows what is really inside the selected cell.
  6. Column letters: A, B, C … across the top.
  7. Row numbers: 1, 2, 3 … down the left side.
  8. Active cell: the cell with the green border. The small green square at its bottom-right corner is the fill handle.
  9. Sheet tabs: Users, Reels, Posts and the + button.

Classroom line

Some people will call them menus, some will call them tabs.

See the Formula Bar in action:

  1. Click cell F2 and type =2+3, then press Enter.
  2. The cell shows 5.
  3. Click F2 again. The Formula Bar shows =2+3.

The cell shows the result; the Formula Bar shows the formula behind it.

6. Rows, columns, cells and how big a sheet is

  1. Columns go across and are named with letters: A to Z, then AA to AZ, BA to BZ … up to ZZ, then AAA, AAB … The last column is XFD.
  2. Rows go down and are numbered from 1.
  3. A cell is where a column and a row meet. Its address is column letter + row number: K144 is column K, row 144; J11 is column J, row 11.

How big is one sheet?

  1. 16,384 columns (A to XFD)
  2. 1,048,576 rows
  3. 16,384 × 1,048,576 = 17,179,869,184 cells, about 1,700 crore cells in a single sheet.
How big is one worksheet? A B C … XFD 1 2 3 ⋮ 1048576 last row 16,384 columns (A → XFD) 1,048,576 rows Column names after Z A, B, C … Z AA, AB … AZ, BA … BZ … ZZ, then AAA, AAB … last column: XFD Cell address = column + row K144 → column K, row 144 J11 → column J, row 11 Shown in the Name Box (top-left, next to fx)

Figure 3. One worksheet has 16,384 columns (A to XFD) and 1,048,576 rows. A cell address is the column letter plus the row number.

Try it:

  1. Click the Name Box, type K144 and press Enter. Excel jumps to cell K144.
  2. Press Ctrl+Home to go back to A1.
  3. On an empty sheet, press Ctrl+Down Arrow. You land on row 1,048,576, the last row.
  4. Press Ctrl+Right Arrow. You land on column XFD, the last column.
  5. Press Ctrl+Home to come back.

7. AutoFill: let Excel continue the pattern

Why: typing 1 to 100 by hand takes minutes and invites mistakes. AutoFill does it in one drag.

What: the fill handle is the small green square at the bottom-right corner of the selected cell or cells. When you point at it, the mouse pointer becomes a thin black +. Drag it down or across and Excel continues the pattern. AutoFill follows fixed rules (number steps and built-in lists); it is not guessing.

Classroom line

It's much easier if you have a mouse.

Dragging small handles is much easier with a mouse than with a laptop touchpad.

7.1 Copy one value

  1. Click a new sheet, or an empty area such as column H on Users.
  2. Type 1 in H2 and press Enter.
  3. Click H2 again, point at the fill handle and drag down to H6.
  4. Every cell shows 1. One plain number is copied, not counted.

7.2 Make a series: 1 to 30

  1. Type 1 in H2 and 2 in H3.
  2. Select both cells (click H2, then drag to H3).
  3. Drag the fill handle down to H31.
  4. You get 1, 2, 3 … 30. The two cells told Excel the step: 2 − 1 = 1.

7.3 Gaps (a step bigger than 1)

  1. Type 1 and 4, select both and drag: 7, 10, 13 … (step 3).
  2. Type 10 and 20, select both and drag: 30, 40, 50 … (step 10).

7.4 Counting backwards

  1. Type 100 and 99, select both and drag: 98, 97, 96 … (step −1).
  2. Type 100 and 90, select both and drag: 80, 70, 60 … (step −10).
Type the yellow cells, select them, drag the fill handle down 1 only A 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 copies 1, 2 A 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 step 1 1, 4 A 1 1 2 4 3 7 4 10 5 13 step 3 10, 20 A 1 10 2 20 3 30 4 40 5 50 step 10 100, 99 A 1 100 2 99 3 98 4 97 5 96 step -1 100, 90 A 1 100 2 90 3 80 4 70 5 60 step -10 Two typed cells tell Excel the step (difference). One plain number is only copied; hold Ctrl while dragging (or use Home › Fill › Series) to count up from one number.

Figure 4. Yellow cells are typed, green cells are filled. Two typed cells set the step; one plain number is only copied.

Ravindra Bagale's Tip

Many beginners type a single 1, drag it, and get 1, 1, 1, 1. For a series, type two values (1 and 2) and select both before dragging, or hold Ctrl while dragging a single number. Right after dragging, a small Auto Fill Options button appears: click it to switch between Copy Cells and Fill Series.

7.5 Multiplication tables in one drag

Why: this is the best exercise to understand how AutoFill reads a step from each row and each column.

How:

  1. In C3 type 2 and in C4 type 4.
  2. Select C3:C4 and drag the fill handle down to C12. You get 2, 4, 6 … 20: the table of 2.
  3. In D3 type 3 and in D4 type 6.
  4. Select D3:D4 and drag down to D12. You get 3, 6, 9 … 30: the table of 3.
  5. Now select C3:D12 (both full columns).
  6. Drag the fill handle to the right, up to column K.
  7. In each row, Excel sees a step (row 3: 2 → 3 is +1; row 4: 4 → 6 is +2) and continues it. Column E becomes the table of 4, F the table of 5 … K the table of 10.
  8. Keep dragging further right for bigger tables: column U gives the table of 20.
Tables of 2 to 10 from four typed numbers B C D E F G H I J K 2 2× 3× 4× 5× 6× 7× 8× 9× 10× 3 × 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 4 × 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 5 × 3 6 9 12 15 18 21 24 27 30 6 × 4 8 12 16 20 24 28 32 36 40 7 × 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 8 × 6 12 18 24 30 36 42 48 54 60 9 × 7 14 21 28 35 42 49 56 63 70 10 × 8 16 24 32 40 48 56 64 72 80 11 × 9 18 27 36 45 54 63 72 81 90 12 × 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 drag right: E = table of 4 … K = table of 10

Figure 5. Four typed numbers (yellow) become the tables of 2 to 10. Columns are filled down first, then the two columns are dragged right together.

Check one value: cell H7 is in the table of 7 (column H), row 7 is the 5th row (7 − 2 = 5), so it holds 7 × 5 = 35.

8. ##### in a cell: the column is too narrow

Why it happens: when a number or date is wider than its column, Excel shows ##### instead of a wrong, cut-off value. The data is safe; only the column is too narrow.

Fix one column:

  1. Point at the boundary line between two column letters, for example between C and D at the top.
  2. The pointer becomes a double arrow.
  3. Drag to the right until the date shows.
  4. Or double-click the boundary. Excel sets the width to fit the longest value. This is called AutoFit.

Fix many columns at once:

  1. Type 01-08-2026 in C4 and drag the fill handle right to P4. Some narrow columns show #####.
  2. Click the column letter C, then drag across the letters to P. All 14 columns are selected.
  3. Drag any one boundary between the selected letters. All selected columns get the same width together.
  4. Or double-click one boundary. All selected columns are AutoFit together.

Classroom line

So here's a little trick.

Before: the date is wider than the column C D E F G H 3 4 #### #### #### #### #### #### 5 Fix: select column headers C:H, then drag any one boundary between them (all selected columns get the same width), or double-click a boundary to AutoFit. After: every selected column widened at once C D E F G H 3 4 01-08-2026 02-08-2026 03-08-2026 04-08-2026 05-08-2026 06-08-2026 5

Figure 6. Before: dates in narrow columns show #####. After: select the column letters and drag (or double-click) one boundary to widen them all.

Ravindra Bagale's Tip

##### is not an error and your data is not lost. Click the cell and look at the Formula Bar: the real value is still there. Just widen the column. (A date or time that comes out negative also shows #####; widening won't fix that one, so then check the calculation.)

9. Dates, months, days and times

9.1 Typing a date

Excel understands a date in many ways. With Indian (day-month-year) date settings, all of these become the same date, shown as 01-08-2026:

  1. 01/08/26
  2. 01-08-26
  3. 1-8-26
  4. 01-08-2026

Excel shows the date in your computer's date format. A real date is right-aligned in the cell. If what you typed stays left-aligned, Excel did not recognise it as a date and kept it as text.

9.2 Filling dates

  1. Type 01-08-2026 in B2.
  2. Drag the fill handle down to B17.
  3. You get 02-08-2026, 03-08-2026 … 16-08-2026: one day per cell.
  4. Click the Auto Fill Options button and choose Fill Weekdays to skip Saturdays and Sundays, or Fill Months to get 01-09-2026, 01-10-2026 …

9.3 Short dates, months, days and times

You type Excel shows Drag down gives
1 aug 01-Aug 02-Aug, 03-Aug … (the current year is assumed)
1 August 01-Aug 02-Aug, 03-Aug …
Jan Jan Feb, Mar, Apr …
January January February, March …
Jan 2026 Jan-26 Feb-26, Mar-26 … (one month per cell)
Monday Monday Tuesday, Wednesday …
Mon Mon Tue, Wed …
10:10 10:10 11:10, 12:10, 13:10 … (one hour per cell)
1 AM 01:00 AM 02:00 AM, 03:00 AM … 12:00 PM, 01:00 PM …
Type in row 1 (yellow), then drag the fill handle down (green) Type: 01-08-2026 1 Aug Jan January Jan 2026 Monday Mon 10:10 1 AM B C D E F G H I J 1 01-08-2026 01-Aug Jan January Jan-26 Monday Mon 10:10 01:00 AM 2 02-08-2026 02-Aug Feb February Feb-26 Tuesday Tue 11:10 02:00 AM 3 03-08-2026 03-Aug Mar March Mar-26 Wednesday Wed 12:10 03:00 AM 4 04-08-2026 04-Aug Apr April Apr-26 Thursday Thu 13:10 04:00 AM 5 05-08-2026 05-Aug May May May-26 Friday Fri 14:10 05:00 AM Dates follow your computer's date setting; with Indian settings Excel shows day-month-year.

Figure 7. One typed cell (yellow) becomes a whole series (green): days, months, weekdays and hours.

Months and weekday names are built-in lists. Excel keeps your style: type monday in small letters and you get tuesday, wednesday …

10. Numbers vs text with a number

A year typed alone does not count up.

  1. Type 2026 and drag down. You get 2026, 2026, 2026 …
  2. Excel sees 2026 as an ordinary number, and one number is copied, just like 1.

Classroom line

It won't increase it. Excel thinks it's just a number.

Three ways to get 2026, 2027, 2028 …:

  1. Hold Ctrl while you drag the single cell.
  2. Or type 2026 and 2027, select both, and drag.
  3. Or drag normally, then choose Fill Series from the Auto Fill Options button.

Text that ends in a number counts up by itself:

  1. Type Week 1 and drag: Week 2, Week 3, Week 4 …
  2. Type Zoya 1 and drag: Zoya 2, Zoya 3 …
  3. Type Shop-01 and drag: Shop-02, Shop-03 …
Plain numbers copy; text that ends in a number counts up 2026 drag 2026 Ctrl+drag 2026, 2027 Week 1 Zoya 1 B C D E F 1 2026 2026 2026 Week 1 Zoya 1 2 2026 2027 2027 Week 2 Zoya 2 3 2026 2028 2028 Week 3 Zoya 3 4 2026 2029 2029 Week 4 Zoya 4 5 2026 2030 2030 Week 5 Zoya 5 Yellow = typed. Green = filled by dragging the fill handle.

Figure 8. A plain number is copied unless you hold Ctrl or give two values; text that ends in a number counts up on its own.

Ravindra Bagale's Tip

If AutoFill gives you the wrong thing, don't type everything again. Press Ctrl+Z to undo, or click the Auto Fill Options button that appears after the drag and pick what you wanted: Copy Cells, Fill Series, Fill Days, Fill Weekdays or Fill Months.

11. The whole chapter on one page

  1. Start › type excel › Blank workbook. Workbook = file; worksheet = one page inside it.
  2. Type a table with headers in row 1: Tab moves right, Enter moves down.
  3. Ctrl+S › Browse › Desktop › name insta › Save → insta.xlsx.
  4. Double-click a sheet tab to rename it; + adds a sheet: Users, Reels, Posts.
  5. Tabs and ribbon at the top; Name Box shows the address; Formula Bar shows what is inside.
  6. A sheet has 16,384 columns (A to XFD) and 1,048,576 rows. A cell address = column + row, like K144.
  7. Fill handle = small square at the bottom-right of the selection. One number copies; two numbers set the step; Ctrl+drag counts up.
  8. Two seed columns dragged right make multiplication tables.
  9. ##### = column too narrow. Select many column letters and drag or double-click one boundary.
  10. Dates, short dates, months, weekdays and times fill as series; Auto Fill Options can switch to weekdays or months.
  11. A plain year copies; text ending in a number (Week 1, Zoya 1) counts up.

12. Try at home

Try at home

Task 1: your own workbook

  1. Create a workbook and save it on the Desktop as myshop.
  2. Make three sheets: Staff, Stock and Sales.
  3. In Staff, type headers id, name, role, salary and add five staff rows (use names such as Shahrukh, Amir, Salman, Ravina and Raja).

Task 2: AutoFill numbers

  1. Fill 1 to 50 in column A.
  2. Fill 5, 10, 15 … 100 in column B.
  3. Fill 50, 48, 46 … 2 in column C.
  4. Make the tables of 2 to 15 using only four typed numbers.

Task 3: dates and times

  1. Fill every date of next month in one column, then use Fill Weekdays to list only working days.
  2. Fill January to December in a row, and Monday to Sunday below it.
  3. Fill the hours from 9 AM to 6 PM.
  4. Drag a date to the right across ten columns, get #####, and widen all ten columns in one go.

Task 4: check yourself

  1. Open the practice file excel-basics-practice.xlsx.
  2. Do each "Your turn" area and compare it with the answer next to it.

Recap

In short

  1. Workbook = file; worksheets = pages inside it. Save early with Ctrl+S.
  2. One workbook per project, one sheet per kind of data: Users, Reels, Posts.
  3. Tabs and ribbon on top; Name Box = address; Formula Bar = what is inside.
  4. 16,384 columns (A to XFD) × 1,048,576 rows; address = column + row.
  5. Fill handle: one number copies; two numbers set the step; Ctrl+drag counts.
  6. Two seed columns dragged right give multiplication tables.
  7. = column too narrow; widen or AutoFit many columns at once.
  8. Dates, months, weekdays, times and "text + number" fill as series.

Quick revision cards

Quick revision

Revise this chapter in two minutes. Save the cards on your phone or download them as PNG files. All names and numbers are made up for practice.

Revision card: Excel basics Q&A. Covers Workbook vs worksheet?; How big is a sheet?; Why do I see #####?; How do I fill 2, 4, 6…?. With a photo of Ravindra Bagale and a short tip.
Card 1 of 2: Excel basics Q&A · Download PNG
Revision card: AutoFill patterns. Covers 1; 1, 2; Jan; Mon; Week 1; 9:00. With a photo of Ravindra Bagale and a short tip.
Card 2 of 2: AutoFill patterns · Download PNG

More cards for every chapter: Ravi Sir's Cards.

Loading practice tasks...

  1. Total deals won (Easy): Add up Deals won in D2:D11. (sheet "Data")
  2. Average avg deal value (Easy): Average of E2:E11, rounded to 2 decimals. (sheet "Data")
  3. Rows in North (Easy): How many rows have Region "North"? (sheet "Data")
  4. Largest deals won (Easy): The largest value in D2:D11. (sheet "Data")
  5. Days taken (Easy): C2 minus B2. (sheet "Dates")
  6. Start year (Easy): Year of B3. (sheet "Dates")
  7. Due month (Easy): Month number of C3. (sheet "Dates")
  8. Earliest start (Easy): Earliest date in B2:B9 (as a date number). (sheet "Dates")
  9. Deals won for North (Medium): Total of D2:D11 where B is "North". (sheet "Data")
  10. North in London (Medium): Total of D2:D11 where B is "North" and C is "London". (sheet "Data")
  11. Working days (Medium): Working days from B2 to C2. (sheet "Dates")
  12. Weekday of due (Medium): Weekday number of C4 (Sunday = 1). (sheet "Dates")

See all practice tasks in the Task Hub →