Paste special options in Google Sheets - Dashboard Guide

Dashboard Mode - Paste special options

Goal

Learn how to use different Paste Special options in Google Sheets to copy and paste data with control over what gets pasted.

Sample Data

Item	Price	Quantity	Total
Apples	2	5	=B2*C2
Bananas	1	8	=B3*C3
Cherries	3	4	=B4*C4
Dates	4	2	=B5*C5
Elderberries	5	1	=B6*C6

Note: Column D has formulas multiplying Price and Quantity.

Dashboard Components

• Component 1: Copy and Paste Values Only
  Action: Copy Total column (D2:D6) and paste values only to column E.
  Formula/Expression: No formula needed; use Paste Special > Values only.
  Result: Column E shows numbers only, no formulas.
• Component 2: Paste Format Only
  Action: Copy Price column (B2:B6) and paste format only to Quantity column (C2:C6).
  Formula/Expression: No formula; use Paste Special > Format only.
  Result: Quantity cells get Price column's formatting (like font color, background).
• Component 3: Paste Formula Only
  Action: Copy Total column (D2:D6) and paste formula only to column F.
  Formula/Expression: No formula; use Paste Special > Formulas only.
  Result: Column F has same formulas as D but independent cells.
• Component 4: Paste Column Widths
  Action: Copy Price column (B) and paste column width to Quantity column (C).
  Formula/Expression: No formula; use Paste Special > Column widths.
  Result: Quantity column width matches Price column width.
• Component 5: Paste All Except Borders
  Action: Copy entire row 2 and paste all except borders to row 7.
  Formula/Expression: No formula; use Paste Special > All except borders.
  Result: Row 7 copies content and formatting but not borders.

Dashboard Layout

+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+
| Copy & Paste Values   | Paste Format Only    | Paste Formula Only   |
| (Total to Values)     | (Price to Quantity)  | (Total to F)         |
+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+
| Paste Column Widths   | Paste All Except     |                      |
| (Price to Quantity)   | Borders (Row 2 to 7) |                      |
+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+

Interactivity

This dashboard shows manual Paste Special actions. Users select source cells, then choose the Paste Special option to control what is pasted. Each component updates independently based on the paste choice.

Self Check

If you copy the Total column and use Paste Special > Values only to column E, what will column E show? Will it have formulas or just numbers?

Key Result

Dashboard demonstrating different Paste Special options in Google Sheets to control how data is pasted.