Alt + E Mac Excel Shortcut: Legacy Edit Menu (2026 Guide)

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Quick Answer

Alt + E is the legacy pre-ribbon shortcut for the Edit menu. With Accelerator Keys, press Option, then E, then continue with S (Paste Special), A (Clear), or D (Delete).

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If you are looking for the Alt + E shortcut on Mac Excel, you may be familiar with it from older versions of Excel (2003 and earlier), where Alt + E opened the Edit menu. This legacy shortcut still works with Accelerator Keys as the starting key for the classic Edit menu sequences.

What Does Alt + E Do?

Alt + E is the legacy shortcut for the Edit menu from pre-ribbon versions of Excel. On its own it activates legacy mode; the real power comes from the sequences that follow it, which map to their modern ribbon equivalents.

Supported Alt + E Sequences

Shortcut	Command	Modern Equivalent
Alt + E + S	Paste Special Menu	Alt + H + V
Alt + E + S + V	Paste Values	Alt + H + V + V
Alt + E + A	Clear Menu	Alt + H + E
Alt + E + D	Delete Cells	Alt + H + D

Step-by-Step: How to Use Alt + E on Mac Excel

Install the Fix: Download Accelerator Keys (14-day free trial, no credit card required).
Activate the Ribbon: Press the Option key (works like Alt on Windows).
Press E to start a legacy Edit menu sequence.
Continue the sequence: Press S for Paste Special, A for Clear, or D for Delete.

Why Use Legacy Shortcuts?

Many Excel power users learned the Edit menu shortcuts (Alt+E) years ago and have them committed to muscle memory. Accelerator Keys preserves this productivity by supporting both legacy and modern ribbon shortcuts on Mac.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Alt + E work natively on Mac Excel?

No, the native Mac Excel “KeyTips” does not support legacy pre-ribbon shortcuts. You need Accelerator Keys to use Alt + E sequences on Mac.

There is no single equivalent — the old Edit menu commands were spread across the ribbon’s Home tab. The table above shows where each sequence maps.