A cell is a single element in a worksheet that can hold a value, some text, or a formula. The basic unit of work for any spreadsheet solution is the cell. A cell is identified by its address, which consists of its column letter and row number. For example, cell F8 is the cell in the sixth column, eighth row. Excel has a total of 1048576 rows and 16384 columns, total cells: 1048576*16384=17,179,869,184.
A group of one or more cells is called a range. You designate a range address by specifying its upper-left cell address and its lower-right cell address, separated by a colon.
Range reference examples
You can copy the following range references into the Name box and press Enter to select the cells or ranges.
| Range reference | Description |
|---|---|
| A5 | A range that consists of a single cell. |
| A1:C1 | Three cells that occupy one row and three columns. |
| B1:B100 | 100 cells in column B. |
| A1:D5 | 20 cells (five rows by four columns). |
| A1:A1048576 | An entire column of cells; this range also can be expressed as A:A. |
| B:B | An entire column of cells; Column B. |
| A2:XFD2 | An entire row of cells; this range also can be expressed as 2:2. |
| 3:3 | An entire row of cells; Row 3. |
| A1:XFD1048576 | All cells in a worksheet. This range also can be expressed as either A:XFD or 1:1048576. |
| A1,C2 | Two cells, A1 and C2. |
| A1:B2,C3:D3 | Union two ranges A1:B2 and C3:D3 into one reference |
| A2:C4 B1:B5 | Intersect range A2:C4 with range B1:B5, which is B2:B4. |
For more information about Excel reference operators, see Use Calculation Operators in Excel Formulas.