Microsoft Excel offers a large number of formatting options, including the ability to create bold, italics, underline, font color, cell background color and cell highlighting. Other formatting options in Excel include the ability to:

a. change the width of an entire column

b. align cell text or numbers

c. change alter the type of data that Excel recognizes is in the cell (e.g., text, general number, currency, date, etc.)

d. or remove cell borders

e. display data as a table

f. apply pre-configured Cell Styles

Excel even offers a Conditional Formatting feature, meaning that you can have Excel automatically adjust the look of a cell based upon its contents.

Applying Formatting to an Entire Cell, Row or Column

Most formatting features in Excel apply to the entire cell. To apply cell formatting to an entire cell, row, or column, you should first highlight the cell or range (group of cells) in question. Then, in the Home tab in your Excel Ribbon (at the top of your screen), select the formatting option you prefer. Most formatting options are found in the Home tab in the Font, Number, Alignment and Styles sections.

How to Make Bold in Part of an Excel Cell

Formatting features such as bold, italics, and underline can also be applied to just one portion of a cell's contents. To make bold (or add italics or underline) just a part of an Excel cell, you will need to actually enter the cell so that you can directly edit the text therein. Here's how:

1. Click on the cell whose text you want to partially bold.

2. Enter the cell and directly edit the content by clicking on F2 (one of the buttons at the very top of your computer's keyboard). Or, you can use your mouse to click directly on the Formula Bar just above your worksheet.

3. Now, you will notice that when you click on the cell's contents, you can actually highlight just a portion of its contents without highlighting the whole thing. Highlight the portion of the cell you want to make bold using your mouse.

4. While this portion is still highlighted, click on the "B" icon (for bold) found in the Font section of the Home tab. Or, just click [Ctrl + B]. Now press Enter.

You're done! As you can see, just the portion of the cell you highlighted should be bold.