How to change Direction of the Enter key in Excel

If you want to change the selection direction after pressing the Enter button in the Excel spreadsheet, then this post will show you how to do it. Although it moves the selection to the bottom cell, you can select any other direction with the help of this guide.

Let’s assume that the C6 cell is selected in a spreadsheet opened in Microsoft Excel. At this moment, if you press the Enter button on your keyboard, it will move the cursor to the C7 cell. However, there could be times when you might want to move the cursor to another direction, such as D6 or B6, or C5. In such situations, you can use these guides to get the job done.

How to change the Direction of the Enter key in Excel

To change the cursor movement direction or change selection direction after pressing Enter key in Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, follow these steps:

1. Open Microsoft Excel on your computer.
2. Click on the File > Options.
3. Switch to the Advanced tab.
4. Make sure the After pressing Enter, move selection option is ticked.
5. Expand the drop-down menu and choose a direction.
6. Click the OK button.

Let’s delve into these steps in detail.

First, you need to open Microsoft Excel on your computer and click on the File in the top menu bar. Then, click the Options visible in the bottom-left corner.

Next, switch to the Advanced tab and make sure that After pressing Enter, move selection option is checked. Following that, expand the respective drop-down menu and choose a direction as per your requirements.

Click the OK button to save the change.

Change selection direction after pressing Enter in Excel using Group Policy

To change selection direction after pressing Enter in Excel using Group Policy, follow these steps:

1. Press Win+R to display the Run dialog.
2. Type gpedit.msc and hit the Enter button.
3. Navigate to Advanced in User Configuration.
4. Double-click on the Move selection after Enter direction setting.
5. Choose the Enabled option.
6. Choose the direction from the drop-down list.
7. Click the OK button.

To know more about these aforementioned steps, continue reading.

First, you need to open the Local Group Policy Editor. For that, press Win+R, type gpedit.msc, and hit the Enter button. Then, follow this path:

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Microsoft Excel 2016 > Excel Options > Advanced

Double-click on the Move selection after Enter direction setting on the right-hand side and choose the Enabled option.

Then, expand the drop-down list, and select a direction to which you want to move the selection when you press the Enter button. Once done, click the OK button to save the change.

If you cannot find the mentioned path in the GPEDIT, it implies that the Group Policy template is not installed. In that case, you need to download the administrative template for Office.

Change the cursor movement direction after pressing Enter in Excel using Registry

To change selection direction after pressing Enter in Excel using Registry, follow these steps:

1. Search for registry editor in the Taskbar search box.
2. Click on the individual search result.
3. Click the Yes button.
4. Navigate to excel in HKCU.
5. Right-click on excel > New > Key.
6. Name it as options.
7. Right-click on options > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
8. Set the name as moveenterdir.
9. Double-click on it to set the Value data as 1, 2, or 3.
10. Click the OK button and restart your PC.

To learn more about these steps, keep reading.

To get started, search for registry editor in the Taskbar search box, click on the individual search result and click the Yes button to open the Registry Editor. After that, navigate to the following path:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\office\16.0\excel

Right-click on the excel key, select New > Key and name it options.

Here you need to create a REG_DWORD value. For that, right-click the options key, select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it as moveenterdir.

Next, you need to set the Value data. If you want to move the cursor to the right, enter 1 as the Value data. Enter 2 if you want to move the cursor to the up. Similarly, enter 3 if you want to move it to the left.

Once done, click the OK button and restart your computer.

Read: How to open two Excel files in separate windows.

How do you make Enter go to the right in Excel?

To make Enter go to the right in Excel, you have three options. However, the Excel Options panel method is probably the easiest one. For that, open Excel, click on the File > Options, and switch to the Advanced tab. Then, expand the After pressing Enter, move selection drop-down list, and choose the Right option.

How do you press Enter in Excel without going to the next cell?

If you want to press Enter in Excel but do not want to go to the next cell, you need to disable the After pressing Enter, move selection option. To do that, open Excel and go to File > Options. Then, switch to the Advanced tab, and remove the tick from the After pressing Enter, move selection checkbox.

That’s all! Hope this guide has helped you.