Create your own styles
Apply existing styles
Copy or merge styles from other workbooks
Delete custom styles

Creating your own styles

There are several ways to create your own styles, using the Style dialog box (Format menu, Styles command).

The easiest way to create a new style is by basing it on cells that have the formatting characteristics you want to assign to the style. This is called creating a style by example, because you use your own worksheet formatting to define the style.

If you don’t format cells before creating a style, the Normal style will be displayed in the Style name box. Excel predefines several styles in addition to the Normal style, including Comma, Currency, and Percent styles. You can modify any of these styles (or any other style that you define).

Base a new style on an existing format

• On the Format menu, click Style.
• In the Style name box, enter a name for the new style.

Create a style from scratch

On the Format menu, click Style.
In the Style name box, type a name for the new style.
Click Modify.
Select the style options that you want using the tabs in the Format Cells dialog box.
Click OK.
Under Style includes, specify the style features you want.
Click OK to save the style and apply it to the selected range, or click Add to simply save the style.

Modify an existing style

On the Format menu, click Style.
Click Modify.
Update the style using the tabs in the Format Cells dialog box.
Click OK twice.
NOTE The updated style will be changed throughout your workbook.

Applying existing styles

You can quickly apply an existing style in your workbook, either a predefined style or one that you’ve created. Common styles, such as the Comma Style , Currency Style , and Percent Style , are also readily available on the Formatting toolbar. Other styles can be applied using the Style command on the Format menu.

Apply a style

Select the cell or range of cells to which you want to apply the style.
On the Format menu, click Style.
In the Style Name drop-down list, click the style you want to apply.
Under Style includes, select all the style categories that you want to apply.

Merging styles from other workbooks

When you create a new style, you can use it only in the workbook where you create it — the new style is saved in the current workbook and won’t appear in other workbooks. (This way, you won’t mix up styles for your stock portfolio with those for your college expense budget.) However, you can copy or merge styles from other workbooks into the current workbook.

Merging is a powerful tool, but you should use it with some caution. If the workbook into which you merge styles has matching style names, the new styles can override those existing styles and be applied throughout your workbook.

Merge styles from other Excel workbooks

• Open the source workbook (the workbook you want to copy styles from) and the destination workbook (the workbook you want to copy the styles to).
• Activate the destination workbook
• On the Format menu, click Style.
• Click Merge.
• In the Merge Styles from box, select the name of the workbook you want to copy styles from (the source workbook), and then click OK.

Excel copies all the styles from the source workbook to the destination workbook. If the source workbook contains formatting styles that have the same names as styles in the destination workbook, a warning message will appear asking whether you want to merge the styles with matching names anyway. If you click Yes, the styles will be merged, and the source styles will be applied throughout the workbook.

NOTE The Undo command cannot reverse the effects of the merge. Be sure you want to copy over all the styles from the source workbook to the destination workbook. You may also want to delete any unwanted styles before you start the merge.

Delete custom styles

You can delete any custom style you no longer need. You cannot delete the Normal style. Also, if you delete the Currency, Comma, or Percent style, you won’t be able to use the Comma Style , Currency Style , or Percent Style button on the Formatting toolbar.

Delete a style

• On the Format menu, click Style.
• In the Style Name drop-down list, select the custom style you want to delete, and then click Delete.