Financial Modeling Tech Stack

"Uh huh."

While I've said publicly that I use the mouse, you can't operate that way forever.

You need some sweet Excel tech to speed things up.

Here's my financial modeling tech stack that makes me a financial modeling assassin.

(also, this post does not contain affiliate links, this is stuff I actually use)

Stack 1: Quick Access Toolbar (in Excel)

A little lame to start, I know, but you've got to start with the basics.

I put my most-used shortcuts in the Quick Access toolbar.

So that way, my shortcuts are simply Alt + 1, Alt +2, Alt + 3, etc.

Customize your Quick Access Toolbar for your most-used shortcuts.

It might seem like overkill, but a two-key shortcut is much faster than a four-key shortcut, and that time adds up.

And yes, I still have "Remove Duplicates" in there even though the UNIQUE function exists now (so it could use an update!).

99% of the time I'm using Alt + 1 to bring up the Paste/Special box, arguably the most versatile feature in all of Excel.

Stack 2: Wall Street Macros (the 🐐)

Wall Street Macros: Each of these drop-down lists comes with several shortcuts you can use.

I installed Wall Street Macros in 2009 and never looked back.

Loaded with shortcut keys, it makes my work so much faster.

A few favorites:

• Ctrl + Shift + B : make font blue
• Ctrl + Shift + K : make font black
• Ctrl + Shift + G : make font green
• Ctrl + Shift + Y : shade cell yellow
• Ctrl + Shift + M : # number formatting
• Ctrl + Shift + D : $ dollar formatting
• Ctrl + Shift + [ : formula auditor (so helpful)

Create a worksheet index, remove conditional formatting, and a ton of other things I'm not thinking of.

A couple other options you can try:

• Macabacus
• ASAP Utilities

They're all solid, so see if you can find one that suits your style.

Stack 3: Keyficient

The complete sucker old school way to learn shortcuts was printing out a PDF and have it sitting on your desk.

(while you cranked away in Excel 2007)

The new way: Keyficient.

Installed directly on your machine, every time you perform an action with the mouse, Keyficient shows you the corresponding shortcut key in a non-obtrusive pop-up window.

(as a bonus, it works in Word and PowerPoint too)

I don't use this one as much just because I have most of the shortcut keys memorized at this point, but this tool is insanely helpful for anyone looking to get dialed on shortcut keys quickly.

Stack 4: Sheetwhiz

There comes a time in everyone's financial modeling career when you'll use Satan's workbook, aka Google Sheets.

And wow, talk about getting humbled — you're good at Excel, then open Google Sheets, and it's like you're starting all over again.

Enter Sheetwhiz, it allows you to use your trusted Excel shortcuts inside Google Sheets, and also comes with a sweet trace precedents engine.

I do a lot of Financial Modeling for SaaS start-ups, and in true tech start-up fashion, they often like Google Sheets instead of Excel.

So like it or not, I have to live on the dark side. Sheetwhiz makes it easier (and I use it daily).

Bonus Stack: Textblaze

Not originally designed for spreadsheets, Textblaze is actually a text snippet shortcut tool, where you can type "/ " (slash) and then some kind of keyword (i.e., "/hello"), and Textblaze will populate with a snippet, sentence, link, or whatever you want.

In truth, I use Textblaze all the time in emails, DMs, signatures, etc. It's a great little tool.

Now, when it comes to my financial modeling tech stack, I have shortcuts for complex formulas:

These are formulas I need often but don't have memorized. Textblaze let's me recall them instantly. Fast and helpful.

Financial Modeling Tech Stack — That's a Wrap

I'm sure you've noticed a theme: everything above is based around efficiency.

And yes, I use the mouse too (at times), but 95% is keyboard shortcuts — you just won't be able to cut it in the financial modeling world without them.

If you're interested, here are the links one more time (not affiliate).

• 🔗 Wall Street Macros
• 🔗 Keyficient
• 🔗 Sheetwhiz
• 🔗 Textblaze

That's it for today. See you next time.
—Chris

p.s., if you enjoyed this post, then please consider checking out my Financial Modeling Courses.  As featured by Wharton Online, Wall Street Prep, and LinkedIn Learning, you'll learn to build the exact models I use with Private Equity and FP&A teams around the world.  👉 Click here to learn more.