Setting up a page in Microsoft Excel involves configuring the layout and formatting options

to ensure that your spreadsheet prints correctly. The Print Preview and Page Break Preview
features are essential tools in this process. Here is a detailed guide on how to use these
features in Excel:

Page Setup

1. Accessing Page Setup:

o Open your Excel spreadsheet.
o Go to the "Page Layout" tab on the Ribbon.
2. Page Setup Options:
o Margins: Click on "Margins" to set the top, bottom, left, and right margins of
the page. You can select predefined margin sizes or customize your own by
clicking "Custom Margins".
o Orientation: Choose between "Portrait" (vertical) and "Landscape"
(horizontal) orientation for your page.
o Size: Select the paper size (e.g., A4, Letter) from the "Size" dropdown.
o Print Area: Define a specific area of your worksheet to print by selecting
"Print Area" and then "Set Print Area". This will print only the selected cells.
o Breaks: Insert manual page breaks by clicking on "Breaks" and then "Insert
Page Break" to control where pages break when printing.
3. Sheet Options:
o Print Titles: If you want certain rows or columns to repeat on each printed
page, click on "Print Titles". In the Page Setup dialog box, specify the rows or
columns you want to repeat.
o Gridlines and Headings: Choose to print gridlines and row/column headings
by checking the respective boxes under the "Sheet Options" section.

Print Preview

1. Accessing Print Preview:

o Go to the "File" tab and select "Print" to access the Print Preview mode.
Alternatively, you can use the shortcut Ctrl + P.
2. Using Print Preview:
o In Print Preview, you can see exactly how your document will look when
printed.
o Use the navigation arrows to view different pages.
o Adjust settings such as margins, orientation, and scaling directly from the
Print Preview screen. Changes made here will reflect in real-time on the
preview.
3. Adjusting Settings:
o Copies: Specify the number of copies you want to print.
o Printer: Select the printer you wish to use.
o Settings: Adjust settings such as the number of pages per sheet, print on both
sides (duplex printing), and paper size.

Page Break Preview

1. Accessing Page Break Preview:

 o Click on the "View" tab and select "Page Break Preview". Alternatively, you
can click on the Page Break Preview button located on the status bar at the
bottom of the Excel window.
2. Using Page Break Preview:
o Page Break Preview shows how your content will be divided into pages.
o You can manually adjust page breaks by dragging the blue dashed lines. These
lines represent where pages will break when printed.
o Automatic Page Breaks: These are indicated by dashed blue lines and are
placed by Excel based on the content and page size.
o Manual Page Breaks: These are solid blue lines that you can move to
customize the page layout.
3. Adjusting Page Breaks:
o To insert a manual page break, select the row or column where you want the
page break to start, go to the "Page Layout" tab, click on "Breaks", and select
"Insert Page Break".
o To remove a manual page break, select the row or column, go to "Breaks", and
select "Remove Page Break".

Summary

The Page Setup process in Excel, coupled with Print Preview and Page Break Preview,
ensures that your printed spreadsheets look professional and organized. By setting margins,
orientation, size, and print area, and by adjusting page breaks as needed, you can control the
layout and ensure that important information is not cut off or awkwardly divided across
pages. Use Print Preview to make final adjustments and confirm the appearance of your
document before printing.