Ctrl+Shift+C and Ctrl+Shift+V to copy/paste formats not working in Excel

Question

I have been using the Ctrl+Shift+C and Ctrl+Shift+V to copy/paste formats in Excel for years but they have stopped working. The computer beeps when I try them. There is no Customize Keyboard option in Excel either. Were these options removed?

Answer 1

I have been using the Ctrl+Shift+C and Ctrl+Shift+V to copy/paste formats in Excel for years but they have stopped working. The computer beeps when I try them. There is no Customize Keyboard option in Excel either. Were these options removed?

Godammit, I thought it was just me. I was a graduate student and working on my thesis. The shortcuts stopped working and I thought I was going crazy, but none of my friends used advanced shortcuts so I don't know whom to ask. As I found this thread, I finally found out that they DID change the shortcuts sometime this year. The old default copy paste that uses Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V is now Ctrl + Shift + C/V, that's why the formatting copy-paste that used to be Ctrl Shift now Ctrl Alt. To be honest, this new combination is difficult to reach by my fingers -__-

In any case, to sum everything up, this is what I found:

Function	Old Keyboard Shortcut	New Keyboard Shortcut
Copying and pasting text to a location specified (by cursor indicator?)	Ctrl + C<br><br>Ctrl + V	Ctrl + Shift + C<br><br>Ctrl + Shift + V (pasting text only?)
Copying and pasting the format of a text/paragraph (?)	Ctrl + Shift + C<br><br>Ctrl + Shift + V	Ctrl + Alt + C<br><br>Ctrl + Alt + V
If you are wondering, what's the default Ctrl + C/V does now? The answer is..
Copying the text and saved it on the CLIPBOARD	Does not exist	Ctrl + C

So what we need to do is revert the shortcuts manually. I personally don't see any need to add that specific function to only save it on clipboard. Back then, if all you want is to save the data via clipboard, then just don't use the pasting command. What a headache.

Additional note:

To change these, go to Customize Shortcuts, pick "All Commands" (it's located before Macros, a bit below on the menu). To be honest, I am a bit confused myself about the differences between these commands, but try checking out "EditPaste", "EditCopy", then "CopyText", and "PasteFormat".

Answer 2

Yes - it is documented.

I didn't read through everyone's comments, but for those asking about where ALT+CTRL+C/V is documented, in Excel's online help, there is a tip describing the keyboard shortcut. You can access the help topic by hovering over the Format Painter ribbon icon, then select the "Tell me more" link. Under item 4 the user tip clearly describes the shortcut. It even lets you know that the cursor does not change, which confuses people I've taught this feature.

Answer 3

Thanks for pointing out the documentation. That's great because it means this is a BUG and not a feature request. The keyboard shortcuts are not working in Excel.

Answer 4

When these shortcut changes happen without the knowledge of the typical users, all the estimates of time being saved are useless: If one has to use 30 minutes up to whatever time needed to resolve the change, (3 hours, or 3 days, or more), where does that enter into the estimates? I simply was trying to use Ctrl + C (or P, or A) to copy a reference article at
< https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/what-s-new-and-announcements-for-the-phone-link-d6d081c3-c7a6-9131-4b9e-f7cac02f44ca  >, but nothing works due to the web page seemingly freezing. After this detour, which took more than an hour, the web page finally returned to a normal state with the copy-paste shortcuts intact. A related issue is when I make a selection of the contents, the highlighted selection is difficult to de-select. It will do so only after some time has passed. Esc or making a re-selection work only after some indeterminate time has passed.

Answer 5

I need bring them back... It's not convenient...