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What key combination do I have to press to create a line break in a cell in Excel for Mac 2011? The Windows combination of Alt+Enter does not work on the Mac.

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10 Answers 10

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149

The answer is to use Control+Option+Enter, which will create a line break in the cell.

As an alternative, Control+Command+Enter can also be used to achieve the same.

These combinations work both in Excel for Mac 2011 and the new Excel for Mac 2015.

As pointed out by Shameer in this answer, Alt+Enter now seems to work as well in the new Excel for Mac 2015.

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  • Alt+Enter works for Windows as well. Tanks.
    – RredCat
    Apr 7, 2017 at 11:23
  • 1
    The Alt + Enter method does work, but I found that Word Wrap needs to be enabled on the cell, or linebreaks were ignored.
    – rivimey
    Jan 13, 2020 at 17:15
  • 1
    It doesn't work for me on Mac. I have to use Shift+Command+Enter
    – Robin
    Feb 19, 2021 at 21:31
  • @Robin thanks for posting, only one that works on my 2019 MacBook Pro.
    – Noumenon
    Nov 18, 2021 at 8:11
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The ⌥ alt key is also the ⌥ option key on a Mac keyboard.
Hence, ⌃ control+option ⌥+↩ return works too.

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5

Use Alt+Enter. It should solve your problem.

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  • 2
    This seems to be a new addition in Excel for Mac 2015 (Preview) - it didn't work in Excel for Mac 2011.
    – nwinkler
    Jun 17, 2015 at 6:13
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    This does NOT work for me on the Mac. I'd downvote, but rep is too low on this SE property.
    – quickshiftin
    Jun 17, 2015 at 17:21
  • Easier and works on Excel 2016
    – YvesR
    Oct 20, 2017 at 8:26
  • This is the only answer that works on Excel 16.34 I'm running.
    – Ed Randall
    Mar 9, 2020 at 17:23
3

Control+option+enter

or

Command+option+enter

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2

None of these seems to work. Have tried all. I am using a keyboard to interface to the Mac. I am using Office 365.

EDIT: Weirdly if I used fn+f2 to get the curser in the cell, fn+alt+cmd+return then worked...

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-1

All was wrong. Fn + Shift + Enter is the right combination .

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1
  • Doesn't work for me.
    – nwinkler
    May 6, 2015 at 11:31
-2

ctrl ⌃ + command ⌘ + return ↩ at the same time.

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  • I tried this in Excel for Mac 2011, and it works.
    – nwinkler
    Aug 29, 2014 at 6:19
-2

fn + ⌃ + ⌥ + ↩.

The fn causes the option key to become the alt key.

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  • 1
    there is already a accepted answer here, so what is it you are trying to do ?
    – Ruskes
    Apr 2, 2014 at 17:04
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    FN does not cause option to become alt — option and alt is the same thing.
    – grg ♦
    Apr 2, 2014 at 18:12
  • You do need the FN key.
    – Chords
    Jun 4, 2014 at 18:42
-2

In Microsoft Excel for Mac (Preview)

ctrl ^ + U

or

fn + F2

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  • These don't add a line break in a call, they switch to edit mode in the cell, allowing to type text in the cell.
    – nwinkler
    May 6, 2015 at 11:33
-3

http://giffconstable.com/2013/10/mac-excel-keyboard-shortcuts/ helped me figure it out -> it turns out to be ctrl-i worked on my macbook

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