Unmerge Cells in Google Sheets
How to Unmerge Cells in Google Sheets? Many times, you may encounter merged cells in your spreadsheet. These merged cells can make it difficult to sort or filter data.[1]
Fortunately, you can unmerge these merged cells quickly and easily. Here are three ways to do so:
Merge cells in small datasets
In a small dataset, it is often important to merge cells to make them more useful. In Google Sheets, you can easily merge cells by clicking the pencil icon in the bottom right of a cell.[2]
The merged cell will then be displayed below the original one. If you want to unmerge cells, you can use the X button in the top right corner of a merged cell.
Several studies have shown that a merged cell can help you save time by allowing you to perform operations faster. For example, a merged cell can allow you to perform calculations in parallel.
You can’t sort columns with merged cells
Merged cells in Google Sheets can be a confusing issue, and they’re often difficult to sort. This is especially true when there’s a header row that contains the same information for multiple columns.[3]
You can unmerge merged cells in a few ways. First, you can highlight the merged cells and then click on the drop-down menu that’s present next to the merge icon on the toolbar.
This will bring up a list of the options available, including merging all the cells, unmerging individual merged cells, and unmerging an entire area.
Another option is to select a range of merged cells and then click on the downward arrow to choose the merge vertically or horizontally options. [4]This will make sure that all merged cells are reverted back to their original state.
It is important to note that you can only use these merge options if the cells are contiguous. Otherwise, they won’t be able to be combined by any of the options on offer.
In addition, the merged cell range should be in a consistent position on the page. This will ensure that you’re not causing unnecessary data loss while trying to unmerge the cells.[5]
Finally, there are keyboard shortcuts that you can use to unmerge a cell range. These include Ctrl + , which removes formatting from the selected cells.
However, keep in mind that this will also remove all other formatting from the cell. This is why it’s recommended to unmerge a cell range by clicking on a single cell.
The other way to unmerge merged cells in Google Sheets is by using a function that retains the top-leftmost value from each of the merged cells. [6]This is a good option for cases where you’re unsure of the order in which the cells should be sorted.
Alternatively, you can create an Excel formula that copies the value from the merged cell to all the blank cells. This will preserve the original data and make it easier to unmerge a group of merged cells.
In addition to these methods, you can also unmerge a cell range by selecting all the merged cells and then pressing Ctrl+A. This will unmerge the cells in one go, but it isn’t as quick as using the method above. [7]
Why Merge Cells in Google Sheets?
Merging cells is a convenient tool to use when you have data that needs to be grouped together. [8]This can be useful for creating headings or labels, or for aligning data in a cell that’s hard to read.
The first step to merge cells is to highlight the cell(s) that you want to combine. You can highlight a single cell or multiple cells by clicking on the cell and holding down the Shift key while dragging your mouse.
Next, you can choose to merge the cells horizontally or vertically. Choosing to merge cells horizontally means that all of the selected cells will be combined into one cell that spans multiple rows. [9]This is most helpful when you have lots of data in several rows and want to print it on a single line.
To merge cells vertically, click your mouse in the top cell of the range of cells that you wish to merge. This will merge all of the selected cells into one cell that will appear across multiple columns.
You can also choose to unmerge the cells that you’ve merged by selecting them and then choosing Format > Merge Cells > Unmerge from the menu or from the quick access toolbar.
You may also be able to get rid of the merged cells by right-clicking them and choosing “Hide Row” or “Hide Column.” This will remove the arrows that show each row or column and hide them from view.[10]
The ‘Merge Cells’ Feature
Merging cells in Google Sheets is a simple, yet powerful feature that can be used to make spreadsheets more readable and effective. It is often useful for formatting headers, and it also lets you modify data ranges by removing their internal borders.
However, the ‘Merge Cells’ feature can be problematic if you use it to analyze data. In some cases, you might not be able to move or copy a column or row across merged cells, which could result in inaccurate results.[11]
In this case, the only thing you can do to correct the problem is to unmerge the merged blocks. This is easily done by clicking the ‘Unmerge’ button in the Format menu.
When you unmerge cells, only the upper-leftmost cell within the merged range is preserved. This is because a merged cell can only contain one piece of data.
To avoid this, you can choose to keep or remove source values when you merge cells. [12]You can also specify which delimiters to use, and even skip empty cells.
If you want to combine two columns into a single column, you can do so using the formula CONCAT(&). This function will join the values in each column.
Aside from this, you can also use the Ampersand (&) character to merge values in more than two cells at a time. This is a much more convenient option than using the CONCAT function, and it is often preferred by users.[13]
Keyboard Shortcut for Merging Cells
If you have a lot of data and need to merge it together quickly, you can set up a keyboard shortcut for merging cells.[14] The keyboard shortcut works with all types of cell sizes and formats, including text, numbers, and dates.
To create a cell merge shortcut, you should first highlight the cells to be merged. Then, type the desired key combination (for example, CONTROL+M) and click ‘OK.’ This will be your new shortcut.
Once you’ve established your new shortcut, it’s easy to use it whenever you need to merge a few cells at once. There are four different merging options available, each with its own functionality:[15]
Merge all – This option merges all the selected cells into an extended cell. The resulting cell will retain the data from the top leftmost cell and also keep its content from any other cells in the selection.
On the other hand, Unmerge – This function removes merged formatting and converts it back into individual cells. It will also retain the text from the merged cell.
If you want to keep all the data in the merged cells, you can use Excel’s =CONCATENATE function. It’s a little like the ampersand symbol (&) and will combine any number of strings into one cell.[16]
Create a Google Sheets Formula
Cells in Google Sheets are a useful feature for storing data and performing various functions. They are also easy to use and can be customized. However, it is important to understand how to merge cells in Google Sheets properly to ensure that your spreadsheets are well-organized and easy to manage.
The first thing that you need to do is select the cells that you wish to merge. This can be a single cell or a range of cells that you want to combine[17]. You can select the cells by clicking on them or dragging your mouse across or down the screen.
You can also highlight the entire row or column for merging. To do this, click on the respective header of your target row or column.
After you have highlighted the cells, select the desired merging option in the Format menu or use the Merge Cells shortcut (in the menu bar). You can choose to merge cells vertically or horizontally.[18]
Another useful function to use when merging cells is the CONCATENATE function. This function is a great way to combine data from two or more cells without losing any of the information.
This function is similar to the JOIN function in that it can be used to join the elements of one-dimensional arrays with a particular delimiter. The delimiter can be a space, comma, hash character, or a text string.[19]
The Google Sheets App
If you’ve accidentally merged cells in your Google Sheets spreadsheet and you want to unmerge them, there are a few steps you can take. First, you’ll need to locate the cell or cells you’d like to unmerge.[20]
Next, you’ll need to locate the “Format” option on the spreadsheet’s toolbar. Once you’ve located it, you can click on it to see a list of options.
The most obvious choice is to “Unmerge cells.” This option reverts the merged cells to individual normal-sized cells. This may sound a little drastic, but it’s a lot easier than trying to do it manually.
Another good way to do this is by using a formula. You can write a formula that combines data from multiple cells into one.
This is useful if you’re dealing with large amounts of data or if you’re working on a project that requires a lot of analysis. It’s also great if you want to save time and prevent yourself from typing the same information over and over again.
You can even use this method to remove a single cell that contains text that’s too long to fit in a single column or row. For example, if you have a long product name that’s too large to fit in a single column, you can merge it with another cell to make it smaller and readable.
How to Unmerge Cells
When you’re creating a spreadsheet, you may come across times when you need to unmerge cells. This can be for various reasons, including if you want to sort your columns differently or make your files more neat and organized.
There are a number of different ways to unmerge cells in Google Sheets, depending on your needs. First, select the range of cells that you’d like to combine into one cell.
Once you’ve selected the cells, go to the ‘Format’ tab in the top menu. In this list, you’ll find a section called “Merge cells.”
You have three options for merging cells: Merge all, Merge vertically, and Merge horizontally.
The first option, Merge all, will combine all of the cells that you highlight into a single cell. This is the most common option that people use.
If you need to keep a specific value in each merged cell, you can select the “Retain data” checkbox. This will prevent the merged cell from losing its value when you unmerge it.
However, you should note that the “Retain data” checkbox will only maintain the value that’s in the top-leftmost cell of each merged row or column. If you have any other values in the cells that are merged, they’ll be lost when you unmerge them.
Another important thing to remember is that you can only merge cells in equal proportions across rows and columns. This means that if you have four rows of data and one row of titles, you won’t be able to merge them.
