Excel currency format shortcut: Ctrl + Shift + $

What it does

Ctrl + Shift + $ applies the Currency number format to the selected cells. A price like 12.5 becomes $12.50. The symbol comes from your regional settings, so on a computer set to euros you get the euro sign.

When to use it

Use it on price lists, budgets, invoices and any column of money. The numbers stay numbers, so formulas such as SUM keep working. Only the way they look changes.

How to do it

1. Select the cells with the prices.
2. Press Ctrl + Shift + $ (the dollar sign is Shift + 4 on most keyboards).
3. The numbers show the currency symbol and two decimals.

A quick example

You have prices in column B: 12.5, 39.9 and 7.25. Select them, press Ctrl + Shift + $, and they become $12.50, $39.90 and $7.25. The cells still contain real numbers, so a SUM at the bottom keeps working.

Currency, Accounting and the dollar sign in formulas

Ctrl + Shift + $ applies the Currency format, which puts the symbol right next to the number. The Accounting format lines up the symbols and decimal points in a column and is chosen from the Number format list. Do not confuse this shortcut with the dollar signs in formulas such as $A$1: those lock a cell reference, and you add them with F4 (Command + T on a Mac) while editing the formula.

Not working? Check this

• You see #####: the column is too narrow for the formatted number. Double-click the border of the column header to widen it.
• The symbol is wrong: Excel uses the regional settings of your computer. Press Ctrl + 1, choose Currency and pick the symbol you want.
• Nothing changes: on some keyboard layouts the dollar sign is not on Shift + 4. Use Ctrl + 1 and choose Currency instead.