If there are so many worksheets in your Excel workbook, then finding one that you need when in a hurry is a terrible task. One of the best options to stay organized and to easily find the worksheets you want in a jiffy is to make use of tab colors. By using the tab colors, you can easily find the data you are looking for.

Steps to Change Sheet Tab Color in Excel 2010

The best way to differentiate the Excel worksheet easily is by assigning colors to the sheet tab. If you have been using Excel 2010 workbook, then you would be aware that the inactive sheet tab comes in blue and the active one in white. 

  1. Step 1

To change a tab color, go to the ‘Home’ tab, look for the ‘cells’ group and press the ‘format’ option. A drop-down menu will show up. Locate the tab color option and click on it.

  1. Step 2

Choose a color that comes up on the screen when you press the tab color button. Once the color is pressed, the sheet tab gets that color. Similarly, you can use the same procedure to change the color of the other sheet tabs.

Change Tab Color in Excel 2016

An inactive worksheet tab in the Microsoft Excel 2016 worksheet comes in gray color. The chosen worksheet tabs or the active ones are generally in white. If there are plenty of worksheets in the workbook, then it becomes difficult for you to find the sheet you want. But, if you have given color to the worksheet, then you can get to it very quickly.

Method 1

  1. Step 1

To change the color of a single worksheet tab, move the cursor pointer to the particular sheet, right-click the mouse button to see the menu show up.

  1. Step 2

Look for the ‘Tab Color’ option and click on it. Once done, the theme colors and the standard color options come. If you would like to choose a different color other than what is on offer, click on the ‘More colors’ option to create a customized color for the worksheet. Just click the color of your choice and the sheet tab will instantly have that color. 

Method 2: Using the Worksheet Ribbon

Another method to change the color of a particular worksheet tab is by choosing the options on top of the Excel 2016 ribbon. You need to make sure that the chosen sheet is an active one or else the tab color cannot be changed.

  1. Step 1

In the ribbon, look for the Cells section and there you need to choose the Format option.

  1. Step 2

From the drop-down menu of the format option, you will come across the Tab color button. Move the cursor pointer to that option and a small box with color options will instantly show up on the left or right side of the Tab color option.

  1. Step 3

Press the color of your choice and the sheet tab will change to the chosen color. 

Method 3: Using the Keyboard

If you are a person who is comfortable to work on the keyboard than the mouse, then you can get access to the tab color submenu by making use of certain keys.

  1. Step 1

Press Alt, H, O, and T in succession (one after the other). There is no need to hold any of the keys in a pressed position. After the ‘T’ button on the keyboard is pressed, the tab color submenu is open for further use. Use the arrow keys on the keyboard to get access to this menu option and then press the Enter button.  

  1. Step 2

Now, you will see the color options. Move the arrow keys to choose the color and then once again press the Enter button to select that color for the tab sheet. You will see the chosen color to be as a light gradient on the active tab.

If you are not using the colored tab or it is not in an active mode when you are working on the worksheet, then it will turn into a solid color from the gradient look. Once you press on that tab to work, it turns into gradient color.

Change the Color of the Tab in Excel 2016 on Mac

Microsoft Excel offers the user the option to use a spreadsheet where they can have multiple tabs on a single sheet. If there are three or more of the spreadsheets, then differentiating them will be difficult. This is where the Tab color comes into effect as giving color to a single tab will help it to easily differentiate from the other tabs in the single spreadsheet. 

  1. Step 1

Open Microsoft Excel on your Mac computer. Got to the folder where the Excel spreadsheet is, that you want to work on and double click it so that it opens up as a spreadsheet page. From the tabs below the worksheet, move the cursor to the tab that you want to change color and right-click the mouse button.  

  1. Step 2

From the popup menu, move to the tab color option and as soon the cursor points on this, a color choice palate will show up on the right side of this option. Just click the color of your choice and you will soon see it reflect as a gradient on the active tab. If that colored tab is in an inactive position, then it will have a deeper color and will turn gradient once you start working on that tab.  

Change the tab Color of Contiguous Worksheets in Excel

The procedure to change the tab color for multiple sheets is to choose the sheets that you want to change the color and then give the color to it. 

  1. Step 1

Move the cursor to the leftmost sheet tab that you would like to change. This is the starting point. Now, press and hold the Shift key and then choose the rightmost tab sheet that you would like to change the color. Now, the tabs for color change are chosen.

  1. Step 2

Move your cursor to the top ribbon and look for the format option in the cells section. Click on it and from the drop-down menu; you need to move the cursor pointer to the tab color option. Once there, the color palate with several options shows up. Move the cursor to the color that you would like to give for the tab worksheets and press on it. Now, you will find the color of the active tabs to change from white to the chosen color.

How do I change the tab color?

Change your browser color
  1. Open Chrome browser.
  2. On the right, click Customize .
  3. Go to Color and theme and select a color.
  4. Click Done.

Why can’t I change the color of a tab in Excel?

Make sure the worksheet tab for which you want to change the color is the active tab. Then, make sure the Home tab is active on the ribbon. Once you press “T”, you’ll see the colors submenu where you can click on a color to choose it, or you can use the arrow keys to move to the color you want and then press Enter.

How do I change cell color in Excel based on text input?

Click HOME > Conditional Formatting > Highlight Cells Rules > Text that Contains. In the Text that Contains box, on the left, enter the text you want highlighted. Select the color format for the text, and click OK.

How do I automatically color code certain words in Excel?

How do I color code in Excel based on value?

Choose a range of numbers and then select Home, Conditional Formatting, Color Scale. Choose one of the built-in three-color choices. Using a color scale, the numbers are assigned various shades of red, yellow, and green based on the number selected.

How do I color a cell in Excel based on a formula?

You can color-code your formulas using Excel’s conditional formatting tool as follows. Select a single cell (such as cell A1). From the Home tab, select Conditional Formatting, New Rule, and in the resulting New Formatting Rule dialog box, select Use a formula to determine which cells to format.

Can I sum by color in Excel?

Select a range or ranges where you want to count colored cells or/and sum by color if you have numerical data. Press and hold Ctrl, select one cell with the needed color, and then release the Ctrl key. Press Alt+F8 to open the list of macros in your workbook. Sum is the sum of values of all red cells in the Qty.

Can I use an IF formula in conditional formatting?

But in conditional formatting, IF/THEN/ELSE syntax cannot be applied in a single rule. Conditional formatting is applied using IF/THEN logical test only. It must return TRUE for conditional formatting to be applied.

How do I make a cell the same color in another cell?

There is no setting, function, or formula that will read and display the format of another cell. Depending on the “rules”, you might be able to use Conditional Formatting by having both cells refer to a 3rd cell’s value to determine their color. Alternatively, you could use a VBA program to color the cell.

How do you match formatting in another cell?

Copy cell formatting
  1. Select the cell with the formatting you want to copy.
  2. Select Home > Format Painter.
  3. Drag to select the cell or range you want to apply the formatting to.
  4. Release the mouse button and the formatting should now be applied.