How to Write a Macro in Excel (your first 5 lines of VBA)

Recording is fine, but some things cannot be recorded — a message box, a loop, a condition. Writing a macro is typing a few plain lines.

What you will make

A macro that clears the input cells on a form and stamps today’s date.

Steps

1. Press Alt + F11 to open the editor.
2. Insert › Module. A blank white page opens.
3. Type:

Sub ClearForm()
    Range("B2:B10").ClearContents
    Range("D1").Value = Date
    MsgBox "Form cleared"
End Sub

4. Click anywhere inside it and press F5.

Back in Excel: B2:B10 is empty, D1 shows today, and a box said “Form cleared”.

What each line means

• Sub ClearForm() — start of a macro called ClearForm.
• Range("B2:B10").ClearContents — empty those cells (formatting stays).
• Range("D1").Value = Date — put today’s date in D1.
• MsgBox "..." — show a pop-up.
• End Sub — the end.

Give it a button

In Excel: Developer › Insert › Button (Form Control) › draw it › pick ClearForm › OK. Right-click › Edit Text to name it.

Save it

File › Save As › Excel Macro-Enabled Workbook (.xlsm).

Three more lines worth knowing

If Range("B2").Value = "" Then MsgBox "B2 is empty"
For i = 2 To 10: Cells(i, 3).Value = i * 10: Next i
ActiveSheet.Name = "Done"

Check it worked

Type something in B5, click the button. B5 clears.

Common mistake

A red line = a typo. Read the line, fix the spelling, F5 again. Yellow highlight = the macro stopped there; press the Reset (■) button.