How to Insert a Check Mark

(Tick ✓) Symbol in Excel [Quick

Guide]
Check Mark Vs Check Box
While a check mark and a checkbox may look somewhat similar, these two
are very different in the way it can be inserted and used in Excel.

A check mark is a symbol that you can insert in a cell (just like any text
that you type). This means that when you copy the cell, you also copy the
check mark and when you delete the cell, you also delete the check mark.
Just like regular text, you can format it by changing the color and font size.
A checkbox, on the other hand, is an object that sits above the worksheet.
So when you place a checkbox above a cell, it’s not a part of the cell but is
an object that is over it. This means that if you delete the cell, the checkbox
may not get deleted. Also, you can select a checkbox and drag it anywhere
in the worksheet (as it’s not bound to the cell).

You will find checkboxes being used in interactive reports and

dashboards, while a checkmark is a symbol that you may want to include
as a part of the report.
A check mark is a symbol in the cell and a checkbox (which is literally in a
box) is an object that is placed above the cells.
In this article, I will only be covering check marks. If you want to learn more
about checkbox, here is a detailed tutorial.
There are quite a few ways that you can use to insert a check mark symbol
in Excel.

Click here to download the example file and follow along

Inserting Check Mark Symbol in

Excel
In this article, I will show you all the methods I know.

The method you use would be dependent on how you want to use the
check mark in your work (as you’ll see later in this tutorial).

Let’s get started!

Copy and Paste the Check Mark

Starting with the easiest one.

Since you’re already reading this article, you can copy the below check
mark and paste it in Excel.

To do this, copy the check mark and go to the cell where you want to copy
it. Now either double-click on the cell or press the F2 key. This will take you
to the edit mode.

Simply paste the check mark (Control + V).

Once you have the check mark in Excel, you can copy it and paste it as
many times as you want.

This method is suited when you want to copy paste the check mark in a few
places. Since this involves doing it manually, it’s not meant for huge reports
where you have to insert check marks for hundreds or thousands of cells
based on criteria. In such a case, it’s better to use a formula (as shown
later in this tutorial).
Use the Keyboard Shortcuts
For using the keyboard shortcuts, you will have to change the font of the
cells to Wingdings 2 (or Wingdings based on the keyboard shortcut you’re
using).

Below are the shortcuts for inserting a check mark or a cross symbol in
cells. To use the below shortcuts, you need to change the font
to Wingdings 2.

Below are some more keyboard shortcuts that you can use to insert check
mark and cross symbols. To use the below shortcuts, you need to change
the font to Wingdings (without the 2).

This method is best suited when you only want a check mark in the cell.
Since this method requires you to change the font to Wingdings or
Wingdings 2, it will not be useful if you want to have any other text or
numbers in the same cell with the check mark or the cross mark.

Using the Symbols Dialog Box

Another way to insert a check mark symbol (or any symbol for that matter)
in Excel is using the Symbol dialog box.
Here are the steps to insert the check mark (tick mark) using the Symbol
dialog box:

1. Select the cell in which you want the check mark symbol.

2. Click the Insert tab in the ribbon.

3. Click on the Symbol icon.

4. In the Symbol dialog box that opens, select ‘Segoe UI Symbol’ as the

font.
 5. Scroll down till you find the check mark symbol and the double click
on it (or click on Insert).

The above steps would insert one check mark in the selected cell.

If you want more, simply copy the already inserted one and use it.

Note that using ‘Segoe UI Symbol’ allows you to use the check mark in any
regularly used font in Excel (such as Arial, Time Now, Calibri, or Verdana).
The shape and size may adjust a little based on the font. This also means
that you can have text/number along with the check mark in the same cell.

This method is a bit longer but doesn’t require you to know any shortcut or
CHAR code. Once you have used it to insert the symbol, you can reuse
that one by copy pasting it.

Using the CHAR Formula

You can use the CHAR function to return a check mark (or a cross mark).

The below formula would return a check mark symbol in the cell.

=CHAR(252)
For this to work, you need to convert the font to Wingdings

Why?

Because when you use the CHAR(252) formula, it would give you the ANSI
character (ü), and then when you change the font to Wingdings, it is
converted to a check mark.

You can use similar CHAR formulas (with different code number) to get
another format of the check mark or the cross mark.

The real benefit of using a formula is when you use it with other formulas
and return the check mark or the cross mark as the result.

For example, suppose you have a dataset as shown below:

You can use the below IF formula to get a check mark if the sale value is
more than 5000 and a cross mark if it’s less than 5000.
=IF(A2>5000,CHAR(252),CHAR(251))
Remember, you need to convert the column font to Wingdings.

This helps you make your reports a little more visual. It also works well with
printed reports.

If you want to remove the formula and only keep the values, copy the cell
and paste it as value (right-click and choose the Paste Special and then
click on Paste and Values icon).

This method is suited when you want the check mark insertion to be
dependent on cell values. Since this uses a formula, you can use it even
when you have hundreds or thousands of cells. Also, since you need to
change the font of the cells to Wingdings, you can’t have anything else in
the cells except the symbols.

Using Autocorrect
Excel has a feature where it can autocorrect misspelled words
automatically.

For example, type the word ‘bcak’ in a cell in Excel and see what happens.
It will automatically correct it to the word ‘back’.

This happens as there is already a pre-made list of expected misspelled

words you’re likely to type and Excel automatically corrects it for you.

Here are the steps to use autocorrect to insert the delta symbol:

1. Click on the File tab.

2. Click on Options.

3. In the Options dialogue box, select Proofing.

4. Click on the ‘AutoCorrect Options’ button.

5. In the Autocorrect dialogue box, enter the following:

 Replace: CMARK
  With:   (you can copy and paste this)

6. Click Add and then OK.

Now whenever you type the words CMARK in a cell in Excel, it will
automatically change it to a check mark.

Here are a few things you need to know when using the Autocorrect
method:

 This is case sensitive. So if you enter ‘cmark’, it will not get converted
into the check mark symbol. You need to enter CMARK.

 This change also gets applied to all the other Microsoft applications
(MS Word, PowerPoint, etc.). So be cautious and choose the
keyword that you are highly unlikely to use in any other application.
  If there is any text/number before/after CMARK, it will not be
converted to the check mark symbol. For example, ‘38%CMARK’ will
not get converted, however, ‘38% CMARK’ will get converted to
‘38%  ’
Related Tutorial: Excel Autocorrect
This method is suited when you want a ready reference for the check mark
and you use it regularly in your work. So instead of remembering the
shortcuts or using the symbols dialog box, you can quickly use the
shortcode name that you have created for check mark (or any other symbol
for that matter).
Click here to download the example file and follow along
Using Conditional Formatting to Insert Check
Mark
You can use conditional formatting to insert a check mark or a cross mark
based on the cell value.

For example, suppose you have the data set as shown below and you want
to insert a check mark if the value is more than 5000 and a cross mark if it’s
less than 5000.

Here are the steps to do this using conditional formatting:

1. In cell B2, enter =A2, and then copy this formula for all cells. This will
make sure that now you have the same value in the adjacent cell and
if you change the value in column A, it’s automatically changed in

column B.

2. Select all the cells in column B (in which you want to insert the check
mark).

3. Click the Home tab.

4. Click on Conditional Formatting.

5. Click on New Rule.
6. In the ‘New Formatting Rule’ dialog box, click on the ‘Format Style’
drop down and click on ‘Icon Sets’.
7. In the ‘Icon Style’ drop-down, select the style with the check mark
and cross mark.
8. Check the ‘Show Icon only’ box. This will ensure that only the icons
are visible and the numbers are hidden.
 9. In the Icon settings. change the ‘percent’ to the ‘number’ and make
the settings as shown below.

10. Click OK.

The above steps will insert a green check mark whenever the value is more
than or equal to 5000 and a red cross mark whenever the value is less than
5000.
In this case, I have only used these two icons, but you can also use the
yellow exclamation mark as well if you want.

Using a Double-Click (uses VBA)

With a little bit of VBA code, you can create an awesome functionality –
where it inserts a check mark as soon as you double click on a cell, and
removes it if you double click again.

Something as shown below (the red ripple indicates a double click):

To do this, you need to use the VBA double-click event and a simple VBA
code.

But before I give you the full code to enable double click, let me quickly
explain what how VBA can insert a check mark. The below code would
insert a check mark in cell A1 and change the font to Wingdings to make
sure you see the check symbol.

Sub InsertCheckMark()

Range("A1").Font.Name = "Wingdings"

Range("A1").Value = "ü"

End Sub

Now I will use the same concept to insert a check mark on double click.

Below is the code to do this:

Private Sub Worksheet_BeforeDoubleClick(ByVal Target As Range, Cancel As

Boolean)

If Target.Column = 2 Then
Cancel = True

Target.Font.Name = "Wingdings"

If Target.Value = "" Then

Target.Value = "ü"

Else

Target.Value = ""

End If

End If

End Sub

You need to copy and paste this code in the code window of the worksheet
in which you need this functionality. To open the worksheet code window,
left-click on the sheet name in the tabs and click on ‘View Code’

This is a good method when you need to manually scan a list and insert
check marks. You can easily do this with a double click. The best use case
of this is when you’re going through a list of tasks and have to mark it as
done or not.
Click here to download the example file and follow along

Formatting the Check Mark Symbol

A check mark is just like any other text or symbol that you use.

This means that you can easily change its color and size.

All you need to do is select the cells that have the symbol and apply the
formatting such as font size, font color, and bold etc.

This way of formatting symbols is manual and suited only when you have a
couple of symbols to format. If you have a lot of these, it’s better to use
conditional formatting to format these (as shown in the next section).
Format Check Mark / Cross Mark
Using Conditional Formatting
With conditional formatting, you can format the cells based on what type of
symbol it has.

Below is an example:

Column B uses the CHAR function to return a check mark if the value is
more than 5000 and a cross mark if the value is less than 5000.

The ones in column C and D uses conditional formatting and look way
better as it improves visual representation using colors.

Let’s see how you can do this.

Below is a dataset where I have used the CHAR function to get the check
mark or cross mark based on the cell value.
Below are the steps to color the cells based on the symbol it has:

1. Select the cells that have the check-mark/cross-mark symbols.

2. Click the Home tab.

3. Click on Conditional Formatting.

4. Click on ‘New Rule’.
5. In the New Formatting Rule dialog box, select ‘Use a formula to
determine which cells to format’
6. In the formula field, enter the following formula: =B2=CHAR(252)
7. Click the Format button.
8. In the ‘Format Cells’ dialog box, go to the Fill tab and select the green

color.
 9. Go to the Font tab and select color as white (this is to make sure your
checkmark looks nice when the cell has a green background color).

10. Click OK.

After the above steps, the data is going to look as shown below. All the
cells that have the check mark will be colored in green with white font.
You need to repeat the same steps to now format the cells with a cross
mark. Change the formula to =B2=char(251) in step 6 and formatting in
step 9.

Count Check Marks

If you want to count the total number of check marks (or cross marks), you
can do that using a combination of COUNTIF and CHAR.

For example, suppose you have the data set as shown below and you want
to find out the total number of stores that have achieved the sales target.
Below is the formula that will give you the total number of check marks in
column C

=COUNTIF($C$2:$C$10,CHAR(252))