Cells in Excel are referred to using relative or absolute references. A formula with relative references changes when the cell's position does. If, for example, a cell has a formula "=A1" and you ...

In such a situation, you can use what's called an absolute reference in Excel, which won't change when you drag or copy it from cell to cell.

2. Use Absolute and Relative References Knowing when to use absolute and relative references can significantly impact the accuracy of your formulas.

Q: My partner says there’s an F4 shortcut to creating absolute cell references in Excel formulas, but for the life of me I can’t make it work.