EscribalSpreadsheet
Cell formatting
This group controls how cells look. It sets the font (family, size, bold, italic, underline, strikethrough, color), the cell background (a solid fill or a pattern), the alignment of the text (horizontal, vertical, wrap, rotation, indent), the cell borders, and the number format (plain number, currency, date, time, percentage or forced text). Two extra instructions work at a higher level: one applies a built-in named style in a single step, and another copies the formatting of one cell onto other cells (like a format painter).
Prerequisite: before using any of these instructions, the workflow must already
have an XLSX spreadsheet created or opened (with Create spreadsheet). Every
instruction works on a sheet (tab) inside that spreadsheet, identified by name
(Sheet1 by default), which must already exist.
These concepts recur across several instructions in this group; they are explained here once.
-
Document: indicates which document in the workflow the instruction applies to. If left empty, the current document is used.
-
The sheet must already exist: the Sheet name field chooses which tab the instruction works on, and defaults to
Sheet1. If no sheet with that name is found, the instruction does nothing and the workflow continues with the next instruction. -
Cells and ranges: each instruction works on a Cell range, which can be a single cell (
A1) or a rectangular range written top-left:bottom-right (A1:C3). The formatting is applied to every cell in that range. Cells that don’t exist yet are created automatically. -
Colors are given as hex: the color fields take a hex code, either 6 digits (RRGGBB — the usual red-green-blue code, e.g.
FF0000red,FFFF00yellow) or 8 digits with opacity in front (AARRGGBB). A leading#is optional (#FF0000works too). Each instruction lists its default color. -
Dynamic values (
@name): in any text field (sheet name, range, color, font name, style name, alignment, format code, …) you can type@followed by the name of a value saved earlier in the workflow, and it will be replaced by that value. -
“From variable” fields: the
@nametrick only works in text fields. The number fields (Size in points, Degrees, Indent level, Decimal places) and the yes/no options (Enabled, Thousands separator, Percentage, Symbol before) each have a companion “from variable” field:- If you leave it empty, the value typed in the normal field is used.
- If you fill it in with the name of a saved value, the engine ignores the normal field and reads the value from that variable.
This is mainly for chaining instructions (one instruction saves a value, the next one reads it). If you only work with fixed values, you can ignore these fields.
- Apply Predefined Style .xlsx
- Copy Cell Format .xlsx
- Set Bold .xlsx
- Set Border .xlsx
- Set Currency Format .xlsx
- Set Date Format .xlsx
- Set Fill Color .xlsx
- Set Fill Pattern .xlsx
- Set Font .xlsx
- Set Font Color .xlsx
- Set Font Size .xlsx
- Set Horizontal Alignment .xlsx
- Set Indent .xlsx
- Set Italic .xlsx
- Set Number Format .xlsx
- Set Strikethrough .xlsx
- Set Text Format .xlsx
- Set Text Rotation .xlsx
- Set Time Format .xlsx
- Set Underline .xlsx
- Set Vertical Alignment .xlsx
- Set Wrap Text .xlsx
Apply Predefined Style .xlsx
Applies a built-in named cell style (like Normal, Good, Bad, Heading 1)
to a range in one step.
When to use it: to give cells a ready-made look — a “Good”/“Bad” traffic-light style or a heading style — instead of setting font, fill and border by hand.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to apply this to. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to style (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Style name | Name of the built-in style to apply. Supports @name |
Normal |
No |
Important behavior: only styles already defined in the spreadsheet can be
applied; the name is matched ignoring upper/lower case. Normal always exists;
others (Good, Bad, Neutral, Heading 1, …) apply only if the spreadsheet
already defines them. If the style isn’t found, nothing happens.
Copy Cell Format .xlsx
Copies all the formatting of one cell onto another cell or range (a format painter).
When to use it: when you’ve formatted one cell just right and want the same look on other cells, without redoing every setting.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Source cell address | The cell to copy the formatting from (A1). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Target cell range | The cell or range to paste the formatting onto (B1, B1:B10). Supports @name |
B1 |
No |
Important behavior: only the formatting is copied, not the value. If the source cell doesn’t exist (or its address is invalid), nothing happens.
Set Bold .xlsx
Turns bold on or off for a range.
When to use it: to emphasize headers or totals.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Enabled | On = make bold; Off = remove bold | Yes |
No |
| Enabled (from variable) | Reads the on/off value from a saved value | (empty) | No |
Important behavior: with Enabled off, any existing bold is removed from the range.
Set Border .xlsx
Draws borders around the cells of a range.
When to use it: to outline a table, underline a total row, or box a group of cells.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to border (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Sides | Which sides to draw (see below). Supports @name |
All |
No |
| Border style | Line style, chosen from a list (see below) | Thin | No |
| Color | Border color, hex (6 or 8 digits). Supports @name |
000000 (black) |
No |
Important behavior: Sides is a comma-separated list of left, right, top,
bottom, or all/outer for every side (e.g. top,bottom). Only the chosen sides
are (re)drawn; sides you don’t list keep whatever they already had. Border style is
picked from a list (thin, medium, thick, hair, double, dashed, dotted, medium dashed,
dash dot, medium dash dot, dash dot dot, slant dash dot), so it cannot be typed freely
and does not accept @name. Color may be left empty: the style is still drawn on
the chosen sides and the color is left to the spreadsheet default.
Set Currency Format .xlsx
Formats numbers as currency (money), with a symbol and decimals.
When to use it: to show amounts as $1,234.00, 1.234,00 €, etc.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to format (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Currency symbol | The money symbol to show. Supports @name |
$ |
No |
| Decimal places | How many digits after the decimal point | 2 |
No |
| Symbol before | On = symbol before the amount ($100); Off = after (100$) |
Yes |
No |
| Thousands separator | On = groups the digits in threes (1,234.00); Off = 1234.00 |
Yes |
No |
| Negative style | How a negative amount is shown, chosen from a list | minus |
No |
| Decimal places (from variable) | Reads the decimals from a saved value | (empty) | No |
| Symbol before (from variable) | Reads the before/after value from a saved value | (empty) | No |
| Thousands separator (from variable) | Reads the yes/no from a saved value | (empty) | No |
Important behavior: Negative style is picked from a list — minus (-$1,234.00),
red (the same in red), parentheses (($1,234.00)) or redParentheses (the same in
red) — so it cannot be typed freely and does not accept @name. The plain minus is the
default: a colour nobody asked for used to arrive with the format, and it clashed with
whatever colour rule the sheet already had. Only the display changes; the stored number is
untouched.
Set Date Format .xlsx
Formats cells as dates, using a date format code.
When to use it: to display a date the way you want (31/12/2025, 2025-12-31, …).
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to format (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Format code | The date pattern (yyyy-mm-dd, dd/mm/yyyy, …). Supports @name |
yyyy-mm-dd |
No |
Important behavior: the code uses the usual date tokens — d day, m month,
y year (e.g. yyyy-mm-dd, dd/mm/yyyy, d-mmm-yy). Only the display changes; the
underlying value is not modified.
Set Fill Color .xlsx
Paints a solid background color behind the cells.
When to use it: to highlight a header row, a total, or a group of cells with a flat color.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to fill (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Color | Background color, hex (6 or 8 digits). Supports @name |
FFFF00 (yellow) |
No |
Important behavior: applies a solid fill of the chosen color to every cell in the range. If Color is left empty nothing is applied — the color is the whole point of this instruction; to clear a fill, paint it with the background color you want.
Set Fill Pattern .xlsx
Fills the cell background with a pattern (stripes, dots, grid, …) instead of a flat color.
When to use it: to mark cells with a textured look, e.g. a striped fill to flag “pending” cells.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to fill (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Pattern type | Which pattern to use, chosen from a list (see below); stored as darkhorizontal, darkvertical, darkdown, darkup, darkgrid, darktrellis, lighthorizontal, lightvertical, lightdown, lightup, lightgrid, lighttrellis, gray125 or gray0625 |
darkhorizontal (Dark horizontal) |
No |
| Foreground color | Color of the pattern lines/dots, hex. Supports @name |
000000 (black) |
No |
| Background color | Color behind the pattern, hex. Supports @name |
FFFFFF (white) |
No |
Important behavior: Pattern type is picked from a list of 14 patterns (dark and
light versions of horizontal, vertical, down, up, grid and trellis, plus 12.5 % and
6.25 % gray), so it cannot be typed freely and does not accept @name. Either color may
be left empty to leave that one out of the pattern.
Set Font .xlsx
Sets the font family (typeface) of the text in a range.
When to use it: to change the typeface, e.g. from the default to Arial or
Times New Roman.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Font name | Name of the typeface to apply. Supports @name |
Calibri |
No |
Important behavior: if Font name is left empty, nothing happens.
Set Font Color .xlsx
Sets the text color of a range.
When to use it: to color text — red for warnings, gray for less important notes, etc.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Color | Text color, hex (6 or 8 digits). Supports @name |
000000 (black) |
No |
Important behavior: changes only the text color, leaving the rest of the formatting as it was. If Color is left empty nothing is applied.
Set Font Size .xlsx
Sets the font size (in points) of a range.
When to use it: to make headers bigger or footnotes smaller.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Size in points | Font size in points | 11 |
No |
| Size in points (from variable) | Reads the size from a saved value | (empty) | No |
Important behavior: the size is measured in points, the same unit the spreadsheet program shows in its font-size box.
Set Horizontal Alignment .xlsx
Sets the horizontal alignment (left / center / right, …) of the text.
When to use it: to center headers, right-align numbers, etc.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Alignment | How to align, chosen from a list | Center | No |
Important behavior: Alignment is picked from a list (general, left, center, right,
justify, fill, center across cells), so it cannot be typed freely and does not accept
@name. General is the spreadsheet’s own default alignment: numbers to the right, text
to the left.
Set Indent .xlsx
Sets the indentation level of the cell content (how far it’s pushed in from the edge).
When to use it: to visually nest items, e.g. sub-items indented under a heading.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Indent level | How many indent steps (0 = none) | 1 |
No |
| Indent level (from variable) | Reads the indent level from a saved value | (empty) | No |
Important behavior: the level is a whole number of indent steps; a negative value is treated as 0.
Set Italic .xlsx
Turns italic on or off for a range.
When to use it: to emphasize notes or captions.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Enabled | On = make italic; Off = remove italic | Yes |
No |
| Enabled (from variable) | Reads the on/off value from a saved value | (empty) | No |
Important behavior: with Enabled off, any existing italic is removed from the range.
Set Number Format .xlsx
Formats numbers with a chosen number of decimals, an optional thousands separator and an optional percentage.
When to use it: to show 1,234.50, 1234, or 12.5% — controlling how numbers
read.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to format (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Decimal places | How many digits after the decimal point | 2 |
No |
| Thousands separator | On = group thousands (1,234); Off = no grouping (1234) |
Yes |
No |
| Percentage | On = show as a percentage (multiplies by 100 and adds %) |
No |
No |
| Decimal places (from variable) | Reads the decimals from a saved value | (empty) | No |
| Thousands separator (from variable) | Reads the separator on/off from a saved value | (empty) | No |
| Percentage (from variable) | Reads the percentage on/off from a saved value | (empty) | No |
Important behavior: only the display changes; the stored value is untouched. With
Percentage on, 0.125 shows as 12.5%.
Set Strikethrough .xlsx
Turns strikethrough (a line through the text) on or off.
When to use it: to mark items as done or cancelled.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Enabled | On = add strikethrough; Off = remove it | Yes |
No |
| Enabled (from variable) | Reads the on/off value from a saved value | (empty) | No |
Important behavior: with Enabled off, any existing strikethrough is removed.
Set Text Format .xlsx
Forces the cells to always display their content as text.
When to use it: to keep values from being reinterpreted — preserve leading zeros
(00123), long codes, or anything that would otherwise turn into a number or date.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to format (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
Important behavior: sets the “text” number format on each cell, so the exact characters typed are shown as-is.
Set Text Rotation .xlsx
Rotates the text in the cells by a given angle.
When to use it: to fit long column headers by angling them, or to write text vertically.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Degrees | Rotation angle, 0–180 | 45 |
No |
| Degrees (from variable) | Reads the angle from a saved value | (empty) | No |
Important behavior: the angle is clamped to the range 0–180 degrees. 90 writes
the text straight up, 180 upside-down.
Set Time Format .xlsx
Formats cells as times, using a time format code.
When to use it: to display a time the way you want (14:30, 2:30 PM, hh:mm:ss).
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to format (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Format code | The time pattern (hh:mm:ss, h:mm, …). Supports @name |
hh:mm:ss |
No |
Important behavior: the code uses time tokens — h hours, mm minutes, ss
seconds. Only the display changes; the underlying value is not modified.
Set Underline .xlsx
Turns underline on or off, with a choice of underline style.
When to use it: to underline headers or emphasized text.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Enabled | On = add underline; Off = remove it | Yes |
No |
| Underline style | Which underline, chosen from a list | Single | No |
| Enabled (from variable) | Reads the on/off value from a saved value | (empty) | No |
Important behavior: with Enabled off, any existing underline is removed.
Underline style is picked from a list (single, double, single accounting, double
accounting), so it cannot be typed freely and does not accept @name.
Set Vertical Alignment .xlsx
Sets the vertical alignment (top / middle / bottom, …) of the text inside the cells.
When to use it: to line up text at the top or middle of taller rows.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Alignment | How to align vertically, chosen from a list | Center | No |
Important behavior: Alignment is picked from a list (top, center, bottom, justify,
distributed), so it cannot be typed freely and does not accept @name.
Set Wrap Text .xlsx
Turns text wrapping on or off, so long text shows on several lines within the cell instead of spilling over.
When to use it: to keep long labels readable inside their column without widening it.
| Parameter | Meaning | Default | Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document | Document the instruction applies to | (current document) | No |
| Sheet name | Tab to work on. Supports @name |
Sheet1 |
No |
| Cell range | Cell or range to change (A1, A1:C3). Supports @name |
A1 |
No |
| Enabled | On = wrap text onto multiple lines; Off = single line | Yes |
No |
| Enabled (from variable) | Reads the on/off value from a saved value | (empty) | No |
Important behavior: with wrapping on, the row height usually grows to fit the wrapped lines when the file is opened.
This documentation is the help of the application, and it comes underCreative Commons Attribution 4.0.