Superscript and subscript toolbar for Excel

add the missing formatting buttons to your Microsoft® Office Excel®

Most Microsoft® Office Excel® users have noted that it is very frustrating to use ^superscript or _subscript formatting in Microsoft® Office Excel®. Such formatting is not available on the Formatting toolbar; even adding them there by customizing the toolbars is not possible (on the Windows® version of Microsoft® Office Excel®). The only way to use superscript and subscript effects is to go through the Format Cells dialog each time you need to change the style.

There are several macros and add-ins available in the Internet that try to solve this shortage of Microsoft® Office Excel®. The most popular ones provide special custom "edit dialog" with superscript and subscript formatting buttons. However, this kind of "non-standard" approach differ from the standard Microsoft® Office user interface logic and has poor usability in daily use.

PanuWorld provides you a free easy-to-use solution to this problem: PanuWorld's unique COM add-in adds the Superscript and Subscript buttons on the default Formatting toolbar of Microsoft® Office Excel®. These buttons can be used to format not only entire cells but also change the text style during edit mode (while changing the cell contents). The buttons will work correctly for AutoShapes with text and textboxes, too!

Superscript and Subscript Toolbar Buttons for Microsoft® office Excel® 1.1.4 (ZIP, 292 kB)

Run this setup program to install the add-in and restart Microsoft® Office Excel® to get the new toolbar buttons.

By default, the add-in adds the new Superscript and Subscript buttons on the Formatting toolbar* between the Underline and Align Left buttons (see picture above). If needed, you can copy or move them to any toolbar using the toolbar customization mode. If you accidentally delete those buttons, just restart Microsoft® Office Excel® to recreate them.

The new toolbar buttons work like the built-in Superscript and Subscript buttons in Microsoft® Office Word and Microsoft® Office PowerPoint®, for example, they reflect the text style of the current selection or insertion point.

Uninstallation

To remove the Superscript and Subscript buttons from your Microsoft® Office Excel®, uninstall the add-in using Add/Remove Programs (Programs and Features) in the Windows® Control Panel (and then delete the toolbar buttons in Microsoft® Office Excel® if needed).

Version history

1.1.4 (14.1.2011)

Fixed superscript/subscript buttons appearing initially enabled if Microsoft® Office Excel® is started without a workbook (e.g. by double-clicking on a Microsoft® Office Excel® add-on).

* On Microsoft® Office Excel® 2007 the new buttons are placed on the Add-Ins tab of the ribbon.

This add-in has been tested on Microsoft® Office Excel® 2003 and 2007. It may work on other versions supporting COM add-ins, anyway. Microsoft, Excel, PowerPoint and Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.