

As such, it can be a bit confusing to use. The listing shows the names of the shapes, instead of their text, and the order of the list does not match the order that they appear on the sheet.

It can be shown using the Selection Pane button on the Page Layout tab of the ribbon. The Selection Pane, shown in the image below, allows you to see all the shapes and other objects on a worksheet. Instead, you will need to add it to the Quick Access Toolbar (Excel 2007 - 2019) or by customizing your toolbar (Excel 2000-2003). Unfortunately, you won't find this button on any ribbon tab or toolbar. The Select All button allows you to select all the shapes on a worksheet in a single click. It must be toggle back off to resume normal worksheet usage. Important Select Objects is a special cursor.

Each shape you want selected must be fully enclosing within the drag region or it will not be selected. Once toggled on, you can select multiple shapes by holding the left mouse button while dragging the cursor around the shapes to select. To use the Select Objects cursor, first you need to toggle it on, as follows. To avoid this, click the boder of the shape. If you click on the center of the shape, you are likely to be put into text editing mode. There is one gotcha to be aware of when clicking on a shape containing text. To deselect a single shape, simply hold the Shift key down and click the shape again. The most straightforward way to select multiple shapes is to hold the Shift key down while clicking on the shapes. This article walks through each of the techniques, allowing you to see which may be the most useful in any given situation. There are several different ways to select multiple shapes in Excel.
