An absolute reference in Excel is a cell reference that remains constant when copied, so you wont see changes in rows or columns when you copy them. Absolute references are used when you want to fix a cell location. These cell references are preceded by a dollar sign ($). By doing this, you are fixing the value of a particular cell reference.

For example, if you type the formula =A1+A2 into A3 and copy it to another location, B3, the formula will change to =B1+B2. However, if you want to maintain the original cell reference, you can make the cell reference absolute by preceding the columns and rows with a dollar sign. Then, when you copy the formula =$A$1+$A$2 from A3 to B3, the formula stays exactly the same.

To create an absolute cell reference in Excel, you can use the syntax =$B$1. The dollar sign can be used in three different ways to create different types of absolute references:

• Absolute for column and row: The reference is absolutely locked. Example: =$A$1
• Absolute for the column: The reference is locked to that column. The row remains relative. Example: =$A1
• Absolute for the row: The reference is locked to that row. The column remains relative. Example: =A$1

You can use the F4 key in Excel as a shortcut to create an absolute reference. When you are typing your formula, after you type a cell reference, you can press F4 to toggle among the different relative/absolute versions of that cell address.