How To

Excel trick: How to write a lot of text in a single cell

April 17, 2019
Updated: July 2, 2025 at 5:05 AM

Excel trick: How to write a lot of text in a single cell

Excel is not designed for text. When you write long sentences, the program shows all the text on the same line, even if it is very long, although it really is only in a single cell.

In some tables, performing a line break inside a cell allows for a clearer visualization. This isn’t necessarily the best option design-wise.

Click on the cell where you want to write a lot of text
Click on the cell where you want to write several lines and, before pressing “Enter,” keep the Alt key pressed.
Repeat step one to add height to the cell
Keep pressing Enter while holding down the Alt key. The more times you hit Enter, the higher the cell will be.
Resize the height of the cell

Mike Braun

Mike Braun is a technology editor for Softonic. He spent his childhood being frustrated by Battletoads, then moved on to being frustrated by that lava level in Aladdin for Sega Genesis. A graduate of Florida State University, he now lives in Portland where he's working on a science fiction novel series and drinking too much coffee.