Forum Discussion
Adam_Smiechowski
Jul 03, 2026Copper Contributor
Unwanted pasting of data in new raw or column
There is a strange property of excel - when I have a range copied (a cell or more) and will like to add new columns or rows excel will add the with the copied rang pasted. It is awful, as it take tim...
NikolinoDE
Jul 05, 2026Platinum Contributor
This happens because Excel is still in copy mode (you see the “marching ants” border) after you copy a range. While copy mode is active, Excel assumes that when you insert a row or column, you want to insert the copied cells as well, not just create blank space.
How to prevent it:
Before inserting rows or columns, simply press Esc to cancel copy mode (the marching ants disappear). Then insert the row/column normally — Excel will add only blank space.
Alternative:
You can also insert the row/column first and only then paste your data, which avoids the issue entirely.
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Hope this will help you.
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