PURPOSE Good formatting makes a spreadsheet easier to read without changing the actual data. COMMON FORMATTING Use bold headers, consistent date formats, currency formats, percentages, alignment, borders, and readable column widths. DO NOT OVERDO IT Too many colors, fonts, and merged cells can make the spreadsheet harder to use. FORMAT DATA BY TYPE Dates should be stored as dates, numbers as numbers, and text as text. This helps formulas, sorting, and filtering work correctly. CHECK After formatting, test sorting and filtering to confirm the data still behaves properly.