Four ways to split cells into two in Excel

When working in an Excel spreadsheet processor, a user has various tasks, however, even an action that is simple at first glance is not as simple as it seems. So, many have problems trying to split a cell in Excel into two. This article will be about just that.

How to split a cell into two

Roughly speaking, there are no special tools for dividing cells into two in the program, so you have to use adjacent ones. Further in the text, four methods will be proposed that can be divided into two categories: those that involve the division of the cell diagonally, and vertically or horizontally. Without stopping for a long time on the nuances, we will go directly to the methods of how to split a cell into two in Excel.

Method 1: through cell merging

As mentioned earlier, in order to divide the cell into two, it is necessary to resort to some tricks. This is because the cell is the primary structural element, and it cannot be split in two. Because of this, you can do the opposite: combine the cells in the table so that the visually needed cells are separated.

1. Clearly imagine how the table should look like in the end.
2. Select two cells above those that are supposed to be separate.
3. Click on the “Home” tab.
4. On the toolbar, click on the button "Combine and place in the center." It is located in the Alignment category.

Immediately after that, you will notice that all two columns of cells under the merged ones will appear to be separated, although we did not perform any actions on them. To see this more clearly, it is recommended to highlight the borders of the cells. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Select the range of cells that are in your spreadsheet.
2. On the toolbar, click on the "Borders" button.
3. From the drop-down menu, select "All Borders".

By the way, if you want to split the cell into two horizontally in Excel, then you just merge the two cells located to the right or left of it. In this case, the execution instruction will be the same.

This was the first way to split the cell into two. If you need to make, for example, a table header, then it will suit you more than ever, but for other purposes it is better to use other methods. Therefore, we immediately proceed to them.

Method 2: split merged cells

And now it will be told how to split a cell in Excel into two for real. Of course, for this it will be necessary to initially resort to some actions, or to be more precise, then combine two adjacent columns. For this:

1. Run the program.
2. Holding down the left mouse button on the column names (Latin letters located above the first row of the table), select two columns.
3. From the main application tab, click on the arrow next to the Align button.
4. From the pop-up menu that appears, select the line "Merge into lines."

Now instead of two columns you have one. It is in it that you can divide the cell into two. To do this, you need to:

1. Click on the cell you want to divide into two. It is important that it is in the column that came after the merge.
2. Click on the “Home” tab.
3. In the “Alignment” tool group, click on the “Merge and Center” button.
4. In the pop-up menu that appears, select the option “Cancel cell merging”.

Now instead of one cell you have two. By the way, if you are thinking about how to split cell data in Excel into two, then, unfortunately, there are no special tools for this. You will need to use the usual “Copy” / “Paste”. And it’s better to first build the table structure and then enter the values ​​into it.

Method 3: diagonally split using formatting

We have already established that in Excel it is impossible to split the cell value into two, you will have to enter the information after, but if you divide it diagonally, then no preliminary steps need to be taken. And all this is done by formatting:

1. Open the book and go to the sheet in which you want to divide the cell.
2. Highlight her.
3. Then click the right mouse button.
4. In the context menu, select the option "Format cells".
5. A window will appear in which you must go to the "Border" tab.
6. Here is the interface of the cell with the text "Caption". In the lower right or left corner there are buttons, after pressing which the cell is divided by a line diagonally from right to left or from left to right, respectively.
7. After that, you can also select the type of line and its color.
8. Having set all the necessary parameters, click OK.

After that, the cell will be divided into two, and you can enter your values ​​into it.

Method 4: diagonally split using a shape insert

You can also split a cell diagonally using the Shapes tool. However, it is worth considering that this is the best option only if your cell is formed by combining several.

1. Select the desired cell.
2. On the “Insert” tab, click on the “Shapes” button.
3. From the drop-down list, select the object of the same name from the "Lines" category.
4. Holding the left mouse button, draw a line from one corner to another.

After that, the cell will be divided into two diagonally.

Instead of a conclusion

So we figured out what to do to separate cells in Excel. It is worth noting that it is impossible to split a cell with values ​​into two in Excell using a special tool, this is done after just moving the data. The rest of the task does not require much knowledge in working with the spreadsheet editor, especially if you have step-by-step instructions on how to do this.