Scenario Manager in Excel - Step-by-Step Guide

Introduction

Scenario Manager helps you save and compare different sets of values in your spreadsheet. It lets you quickly switch between these sets to see how changes affect your results without rewriting data.

When you want to compare different budget plans for a project.

When you need to test how changing sales numbers affects profit.

When you want to show different loan payment options to a client.

When you want to save multiple versions of input data for a financial model.

When you want to present different what-if analysis results without changing the original data.

Steps

Step 1: Click

- Data tab on the Ribbon

The Data tab options appear

💡 Look for the Forecast group on the Data tab

Step 2: Click

- What-If Analysis button in the Forecast group

A menu with options appears

Step 3: Select

- Scenario Manager from the What-If Analysis menu

The Scenario Manager dialog box opens

Step 4: Click

- Add button in the Scenario Manager dialog

The Add Scenario dialog box opens

Step 5: Type

- Scenario name field

You enter a name for your scenario, like 'Best Case'

Step 6: Select

- Changing cells field

You select the cells that will change in this scenario

Step 7: Click

- OK button in the Add Scenario dialog

A new dialog appears to enter values for the changing cells

Step 8: Type

- Values for the changing cells

You enter the values for this scenario

Step 9: Click

- OK button

The scenario is saved and appears in the Scenario Manager list

Step 10: Select

- Scenario name in the Scenario Manager list

The scenario is highlighted

Step 11: Click

- Show button

The worksheet updates to show the values of the selected scenario

Before vs After

Before

Worksheet shows original values in cells A1 to A3: 100, 200, 300

After

After selecting 'Best Case' scenario, cells A1 to A3 show values: 150, 250, 350

Settings Reference

Scenario name

📍 Add Scenario dialog box

To identify each scenario clearly

Default: Blank

Changing cells

📍 Add Scenario dialog box

Cells that will have different values in each scenario

Default: None

Summary report

📍 Scenario Manager dialog box, Summary button

To create a report comparing all scenarios

Default: Scenario summary

Common Mistakes

Not selecting the correct changing cells when adding a scenario

The scenario will not change the intended cells, so results won't update as expected

Carefully select all cells that should change for the scenario before saving it

Forgetting to click Show after selecting a scenario

The worksheet does not update to the scenario values, so it looks like nothing changed

Always click Show to apply the scenario values to the worksheet

Summary

Scenario Manager saves different sets of values for selected cells to compare results easily.

You add scenarios by naming them and selecting which cells change with new values.

Remember to click Show to see the scenario's effect on your worksheet.