Lesson 12 – Cell Referencing (Relative, Absolute & Mixed)

MS Excel Course • Level 2 – Lesson 12

Understanding cell referencing is essential for writing correct formulas. Excel has three types of references: relative, absolute, and mixed.

What you will learn

• How Excel references cells
• Relative referencing
• Absolute referencing with $
• Mixed referencing
• Using F4 to toggle references

1. Relative Reference

This changes when you copy the formula.

Example:

=A1 + B1

2. Absolute Reference

Add $ to lock the row or column.

Fully absolute:

=$A$1

This reference will NEVER change when copied.

3. Mixed Reference

=$A1 (column fixed)

=A$1 (row fixed)

4. Shortcut: F4 Key

Press F4 after typing a reference to cycle through:

• A1
• $A$1
• A$1
• $A1

Whenever formula results look wrong after copying → referencing is the first thing to check.

Practice Task

• Make a price × quantity sheet
• Use an absolute reference for GST (e.g., =$E$1)
• Copy formula down and observe the difference

Homework

• Create a multiplication table using mixed references