Let’s record a very simple macro – one that selects a cell and enters the text ‘Excel’ in it. Now that we have everything in place, let’s learn how to record a macro in Excel.

The above steps would make the Developer tab available in the ribbon area. On the right, within the Main Tabs pane, check the Developer option.

In the Excel Options dialogue box, you will have the Customize the Ribbon options.It will open the Excel Options dialogue box. Right-click on any of the existing tabs in the ribbon and click on ‘Customize the Ribbon’ option.If you can already see the developer tab in the ribbon, go to the next section, else follow the below steps: The first step to record a macro is to get the Developer tab in the ribbon. Now let’s dive in and see how to record a macro in Excel. This means that even if you know nothing about VBA, you can automate some tasks just by letting Excel record your steps once and then reuse these later. Now, when you stop the recording, save the macro, and run it, Excel simply goes back to the VBA code it generated and follows the exact same steps. When you record a macro, Excel closely watches the steps you’re taking and notes it down in a language that it understands – which is VBA.Īnd since Excel is a really good note taker, it creates a very detailed code (as we will see later in this tutorial). Often, you will find people (including myself) refer to a VBA code as a macro – whether it’s generated by using a macro recorder or has been written manually. If you’re a newbie to VBA, let me first tell you what a macro is – after all, I will keep using this term in the entire tutorial.Ī macro is a code written in VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) that allows you to run a chunk of code whenever it is executed. What Recording a Macro does in the Backend.Getting the Developer Tab in the Ribbon.

Visual basic macro excel tutorial