Excel Cell Operations

Excel Cell Operations

Perform advanced Excel cell operations with AI-powered automation. Merge cells, copy/paste operations, clear content, and manipulate Excel cells with precision.

Available Tools

  • cell_operations - Excel cell operations (merge, copy/paste, clear) with AI-powered automation
  • cell_operations_batch - Perform multiple Excel cell operations in batch through spreadsheets MCP

Single Cell Operations

Merge Cells

{
  "tool": "cell_operations",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/merged-layout.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Report",
    "operation": "merge_cells",
    "range": "A1:C1"
  }
}

Unmerge Cells

{
  "tool": "cell_operations",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/unmerged.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Data",
    "operation": "unmerge_cells",
    "range": "A1:C1"
  }
}

Copy Cells

{
  "tool": "cell_operations",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/data-copy.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Source",
    "operation": "copy_cells",
    "source_range": "A1:D5"
  }
}

Paste Values

{
  "tool": "cell_operations",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/data-copy.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Target",
    "operation": "paste_values",
    "destination_range": "A1"
  }
}

Clear Contents

{
  "tool": "cell_operations",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/cleanup.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Data",
    "operation": "clear_contents",
    "range": "A1:Z100"
  }
}

Batch Cell Operations

Complete Merge and Copy Workflow

{
  "tool": "cell_operations_batch", 
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/financial-report.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Sheet1",
    "operations": [
      {
        "operation": "merge_cells",
        "range": "A7:C7"
      },
      {
        "operation": "paste_values",
        "source_range": "A1:F1",
        "destination_range": "A9"
      },
      {
        "operation": "paste_formats",
        "source_range": "A1:F1", 
        "destination_range": "A12"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Cross-Sheet Operations

{
  "tool": "cell_operations",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/multi-sheet.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Summary",
    "operation": "paste_values",
    "source_range": "A1:F5",
    "source_sheet": "Data",
    "destination_range": "A1"
  }
}

Data Cleanup Operations

{
  "tool": "cell_operations_batch",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/cleanup-demo.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Data",
    "operations": [
      {
        "operation": "clear_contents",
        "range": "A1:A10"
      },
      {
        "operation": "clear_formats",
        "range": "B1:B10"
      },
      {
        "operation": "clear_all",
        "range": "C1:C10"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Operation Types Reference

Merge Operations

  • merge_cells - Merge cells into single cell
  • unmerge_cells - Split merged cells back to individual cells
  • merge_across - Merge cells across rows while keeping separate rows

Copy/Paste Operations

  • copy_cells - Copy cell range to clipboard
  • paste_values - Paste only values (no formatting or formulas)
  • paste_formulas - Paste only formulas (no values or formatting)
  • paste_formats - Paste only formatting (no values or formulas)
  • transpose_paste - Paste with transposed orientation (rows↔columns)

Clear Operations

  • clear_contents - Clear cell contents (keep formatting)
  • clear_formats - Clear cell formatting (keep contents)
  • clear_all - Clear both contents and formatting

Advanced Examples

Report Title Setup

{
  "tool": "cell_operations_batch",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/title-report.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Report",
    "operations": [
      {
        "operation": "merge_cells",
        "range": "A1:F1"
      },
      {
        "operation": "merge_cells",
        "range": "A2:F2"
      },
      {
        "operation": "merge_cells",
        "range": "A3:C3"
      },
      {
        "operation": "merge_cells",
        "range": "D3:F3"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Data Template Creation

{
  "tool": "cell_operations_batch",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "templates/data-template.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Template",
    "operations": [
      {
        "operation": "copy_cells",
        "source_range": "A1:F1"
      },
      {
        "operation": "paste_formats",
        "destination_range": "A10"
      },
      {
        "operation": "paste_formats",
        "destination_range": "A20"
      },
      {
        "operation": "paste_formats",
        "destination_range": "A30"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Data Consolidation

{
  "tool": "cell_operations_batch",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/consolidated.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Summary",
    "operations": [
      {
        "operation": "paste_values",
        "source_range": "A1:E10",
        "source_sheet": "Q1Data",
        "destination_range": "A2"
      },
      {
        "operation": "paste_values",
        "source_range": "A1:E10",
        "source_sheet": "Q2Data", 
        "destination_range": "A12"
      },
      {
        "operation": "paste_values",
        "source_range": "A1:E10",
        "source_sheet": "Q3Data",
        "destination_range": "A22"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Formula and Format Separation

{
  "tool": "cell_operations_batch",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/separated.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Analysis",
    "operations": [
      {
        "operation": "paste_formulas",
        "source_range": "A1:F10",
        "source_sheet": "Calculations",
        "destination_range": "A1"
      },
      {
        "operation": "paste_formats",
        "source_range": "A1:F10", 
        "source_sheet": "Formatting",
        "destination_range": "A1"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Cross-Sheet Operations

Copy Between Sheets

{
  "tool": "cell_operations",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/multi-sheet-copy.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Destination",
    "operation": "paste_values",
    "source_range": "A1:D10",
    "source_sheet": "Source",
    "destination_range": "B2"
  }
}

Summary Sheet Creation

{
  "tool": "cell_operations_batch",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/summary-creation.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Summary",
    "operations": [
      {
        "operation": "paste_values",
        "source_range": "A1:C5",
        "source_sheet": "January",
        "destination_range": "A2"
      },
      {
        "operation": "paste_values",
        "source_range": "A1:C5",
        "source_sheet": "February",
        "destination_range": "E2"
      },
      {
        "operation": "paste_values",
        "source_range": "A1:C5",
        "source_sheet": "March",
        "destination_range": "I2"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Data Transformation

Transpose Data

{
  "tool": "cell_operations",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/transposed.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Data",
    "operation": "transpose_paste",
    "source_range": "A1:E5",
    "destination_range": "G1"
  }
}

Values Only Copy

{
  "tool": "cell_operations_batch",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "reports/values-only.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Clean Data",
    "operations": [
      {
        "operation": "copy_cells",
        "source_range": "A1:F20",
        "source_sheet": "Raw Data"
      },
      {
        "operation": "paste_values",
        "destination_range": "A1"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Best Practices

  1. Merge Strategically: Use merging for headers and titles, not data areas
  2. Copy Before Paste: Always copy source range before pasting operations
  3. Clear Appropriately: Choose the right clear operation for your needs
  4. Cross-Sheet Planning: Plan multi-sheet operations to avoid conflicts
  5. Batch Operations: Group related operations for better performance

Common Use Cases

Report Headers

  • Merge cells for titles
  • Copy header formatting
  • Apply consistent styling

Data Cleanup

  • Clear obsolete content
  • Remove formatting
  • Reset cell states

Template Creation

  • Copy formatting patterns
  • Paste structure without data
  • Create reusable layouts

Data Consolidation

  • Combine data from multiple sheets
  • Paste values only to avoid formula conflicts
  • Transpose data orientation

Error Handling

Invalid Merge Range

{
  "tool": "cell_operations",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "test.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Sheet1",
    "operation": "merge_cells",
    "range": "A1"
  }
}

Result: Error - cannot merge single cell

Missing Source Range

{
  "tool": "cell_operations",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "test.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Sheet1",
    "operation": "paste_values",
    "destination_range": "A1"
  }
}

Result: Error - no copied data available

Invalid Sheet Reference

{
  "tool": "cell_operations",
  "parameters": {
    "filepath": "test.xlsx",
    "sheet_name": "Sheet1",
    "operation": "paste_values",
    "source_range": "A1:B2",
    "source_sheet": "NonExistentSheet",
    "destination_range": "A1"
  }
}

Result: Error - source sheet not found

Excel Row and Column Operations