How to Delete Blank Columns in Excel?

Deleting blank columns and rows is a tedious task when you are working with a large set of data. Manual deletion is not even an option. In this article, you’ll learn to delete the blank columns in Excel in some simple steps using Excel’s built-in tool named Go To Special.

It is a quick and easy way to remove the blank columns. While this makes it a simple alternative to implement, be aware that it may cause your document to become misaligned. Always save a backup copy of your document before you start deleting cells to be safe. 

There are two ways to delete the blank columns in Excel:

Note: The tutorial is for Microsoft Excel 2013. You may find the same or different steps in other Microsoft Excel versions. 

We can delete blank columns in Excel using manual selection and deletion. This method works with all types of data but it is time taking, here I would suggest to use this method only when your data is less. If you have a large number of columns to delete then move on to the second method. Now we understand this method with the help of an example. So consider the example

Step 1: Select the blank columns, to select the blank columns press Shift and press the down arrow to the row upto you want to select the column. 

Step 2: Then right-click on the selected column. A drop-down will appear (as shown below). Select the Delete button. The selected column will be deleted.

Repeat the same steps for all the blank columns left in the required worksheet and delete them.

We can also be deleting blank columns in MS Excel using Go To. So follow the following steps:

Step 1: Open the required Excel where you want to delete the blank columns.

Step 2: Select all the data by selecting the required rows and columns and press F5 from the keyboard. A dialogue box will appear(as shown below) and select Special. The Special feature allows users to select all that has matching criteria as selected such as blanks, numbers, formulas. 

Step 3: After selecting special, a window (as shown below) will appear. Click on Blanks (as shown) and then select OK. This operation will select all the blank columns from the selected data.

Step 4: Then Go To the Home tab -> Cells Group -> Delete i.e go to the Home tab and in the Cells group click on Delete(as shown below). The delete will help to delete the selected row, column, cell, and entire sheet.

Step 5: After selecting Delete a drop-down will appear (as shown in the image). Select Delete Cells.

Step 6: After selecting Delete Cells, a pop-up window will appear(as shown below). Select Shift cells left. This option will shift all the leftover cells left after deleting the blank columns. Click OK.

All the blank columns from the selected range will be deleted.

How do I remove the blank columns in Excel? 

To remove blank columns in Excel, select the column by clicking on its header, right-click the selected area, and choose “Delete” from the context menu. This will remove the entire column.

How do you delete thousands of blank columns in Excel? 

To delete thousands of blank columns efficiently:

• Press Ctrl + Space to select a column.
• Use Shift and the arrow keys to select additional columns.
• Right-click on the selected columns and choose “Delete”. Alternatively, you can use the “Go To Special” dialog (accessible from “Find & Select” in the “Home” tab), select “Blanks”, and then delete the selected columns.

How do I remove unwanted blanks in Excel? 

To remove unwanted blanks (empty cells) within your data:

• Select the range that contains blanks you want to remove.
• Go to “Find & Select” on the “Home” tab.
• Click “Go To Special”, select “Blanks”, and click “OK”.
• Right-click one of the highlighted cells and choose “Delete”.
• Choose to shift cells left or up depending on your needs.

What’s the quickest way to remove blank rows or columns in Excel? 

The quickest way to remove blank rows or columns:

• Select the range or sheet where you want to remove blanks.
• Go to the “Home” tab, click “Find & Select”, and then “Go To Special”.
• Select “Blanks” and click “OK”. This will select all blank cells in the selected range.
• For rows, right-click any selected cell and choose “Delete Row”. For columns, choose “Delete Column”.