Because Microsoft Excel spreadsheets often rely on the accuracy of the data that is entered into cells, it is helpful to use a unit of measure that is native to your current location, or that is natural to the location of the people who will be using the data. …
Like the rest of the programs in the Microsoft Office suite, Excel uses a ruler to let you specify the size of the fields. The default unit of measurement will vary depending on your location, but inches are used for many people.
If you are uncomfortable with using inches as the unit of measure, or if you prefer centimeters, you can change the settings in Excel 2013 to use that unit instead. Just follow the instructions below to find out how.
How to change unit of measure in Excel 2013
- Open Excel.
- Click File.
- Select Options.
- Select Advanced.
- Click Ruler Units and select Centimeters.
- Click OK.
Our article continues below with more information on converting from inches to centimeters in Excel, including images of these steps.
How to change the ruler from IN to CM in Excel 2013 (Guide with pictures)
Note that changing the default unit will also apply in some other places, such as page size. However, it will not convert any values that you enter into your cells.
Step 1. Start Excel 2013.
Step 2: Click the “File” tab in the upper left corner of the window.
Step 3: Click Options at the bottom of the column on the left side of the window.
This will open a new Excel Options window.
Step 4. Click the “Advanced” tab on the left side of the Excel Options window.
Step 5: Scroll down to the Display section of the window, click the drop-down menu to the right of Ruler Units and select the Centimeters option.
Step 6: Click the OK button at the bottom of the window to apply the changes and close this window.
If you’re looking for a low-cost device to watch Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Prime, and HBO Go on your TV, check out the Roku product line .
You can also learn how to change the default file format to .xls in Excel 2013 if you need to use this file format more often.
Difference between page layout mode and normal view
When you create a new workbook in Microsoft Excel, it will probably open normally by default. However, this is not ideal when the appearance of your document is important to how that document will be printed.
If you want to see the units of measure on the ruler, viewing the page layout will be much more useful. Also, if you are trying to set the column width or row height in units other than the confused point setting, then Page Layout will allow you to do so.
You can switch between views in the View tab, but you can also change the default view for new books by going to File> Options> General> and selecting the option you want next to the Default view for new sheets box “.
More information on how to change the ruler from inches to centimeters in Excel
If you don’t see the rulers on the left and top of the window, it might be related to the view you’re currently using in Excel. You can switch to page layout mode by selecting the View tab at the top of the window and clicking the Page Layout button.
The same steps will work in other versions of Excel, including Excel 2016 and Excel for Office 365. When you select a unit of measure for the ruler, the following options are available:
- Default units of measure (this is the unit of measure used in your current geographic location)
- Inches
- Centimeters
- Millimeters
If you entered data in inches in cells, you can use the formula to convert inches to centimeters in Excel. This formula:
= CONVERT (XX, “INPUT”, “CM”)
You will need to replace the “XX” part of this formula with the location of the cell with the data you want to convert. You can also use this formula to convert other units of measure. You just need to replace the various unit abbreviations with the units you want.
Another setting you might want to change is the horizontal and vertical centering of your printed data. You can do this by selecting the Page Layout tab at the top of the window and then clicking the small Page Setup button in the lower-right corner of the Page Setup group on the Ribbon. Then you can click the Margins tab and choose whether you want to center the page horizontally or vertically.
