Lesson 2: Cells, A1 addresses, and $ references

Every cell in Google Sheets has an address: the column letter first, then the row number. For example, A1 is the first column, first row; B5 is the second column, fifth row; C12 is the third column, twelfth row. Several adjacent cells form a range, written with a colon: A1:A10 is every cell in the first column from row 1 to row 10. When you copy a formula to another cell, its references can behave differently — that’s the key idea. A relative reference (just A1) shifts with the formula: copy it one row down and it becomes A2. An absolute reference ($A$1) is locked in place: wherever you copy the formula, it always points to A1. A mixed reference locks only one coordinate: $A1 locks column A while the row shifts; A$1 locks row 1 while the column shifts. To add the $ sign by hand, put it before the column letter and/or the row number. A handy trick: select the reference in the formula bar and press F4 — it cycles through all four variants ($A$1 → A$1 → $A1 → A1 → and back). A practical example: you have products in column A, prices in dollars in column B, and the euro exchange rate in cell D1. To convert every price to euros, enter =B2*$D$1 in C2. Copy the formula down column C: B2 shifts to B3, B4, and so on, while $D$1 always stays on the rate. Without the dollar signs, D1 would shift too and the formula would break.