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Excel - Changing the Number Format in the Excel Watch Window - Episode 864

886 views · Published 7 January 2009 · 2:24 · Indexed 20 September 2026

Channel: MrExcel.com · 2009 · Education

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Microsoft Excel Tutorial: Changing the Number Format in the Excel Watch Window. 

Welcome back to the MrExcel netcast, where we explore all things Excel. In today's episode, we'll be discussing the Watch Window and how it can help you keep track of important cells in your workbook. If you haven't used this feature before, get ready to be amazed.

Let's say you have a workbook with multiple worksheets and you need to see the impact of changes made on one sheet on a few cells in another sheet. Instead of constantly switching back and forth between sheets, you can use the Watch Window. Simply go to Tools, Formula Auditing, and select Show Watch Window. This will bring up a floating window where you can add cells to watch. As you make changes to those cells, the Watch Window will update in real time, allowing you to see the impact on your summary sheet.

But what if you've formatted a cell and want that formatting to show up in the Watch Window? Well, all you have to do is double-click on the cell in the Watch Window and Excel will update the formatting. This is a handy tip that many users may not know about. And speaking of tips, did you know that you can also double-click on a cell in the Watch Window to quickly jump to that cell in your workbook? It's almost like a bookmark, making it even easier to navigate between sheets.

Now, you may have noticed that the Watch Window can take up quite a bit of space on your screen. But fear not, you can easily customize the size of the window by resizing the columns for the formula and name. This way, you can make the Watch Window as small as possible while still keeping an eye on those important cells. And while the Watch Window has been a feature in VBA for 10 years, it was only added to Excel in 2003. So if you're using an older version of Excel, make sure to upgrade and take advantage of this useful tool.

Thank you for tuning in to this episode of the MrExcel netcast. Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more Excel tips and tricks. And as always, happy Excel-ing!

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Today, a question about the Excel Watch Window. If you make changes to the format of a watched cell, why won't the format in the Watch Window change? Episode 864 shows you how to set up the watch window and how to get the latest formatting changes.

Table of Contents:
(00:00) Question about Watch Window in Excel
(00:22) How to use Watch Window with multiple worksheets
(00:41) Adding a watch and tracking changes
(01:33) Customizing Watch Window size
(02:02) Clicking Like really helps the algorithm

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