Have you ever opened up an Excel sheet only to be confronted with a mass of unusable data? Maybe it’s a sheet you inherited from a previous employee, or maybe it’s just a document that’s been passed around the office for years.
Whatever the case, you can find yourself faced with countless blank cells, unused rows, and irrelevant data. But don’t despair! There is a way to hide all that useless information so you can focus on the data that matters.
So, here’s a complete guide on how to hide unused cells in Excel so that you don’t have to wade through all that extra data anymore.
What are unused cells in Excel and why do they matter
Excel is a powerful tool that allows users to store and manipulate data. However, one of the downsides of Excel is that it often contains a lot of unused cells.
Unused cells are those that are not actively being used to store data. They can be created when a user inserts new rows or columns, or when a user copies and pastes data from another source.
While unused cells may not seem like a big deal, they can actually cause some problems like:
- Unused cells can make it difficult to print a worksheet.
- They can cause formulas to return errors.
- Additionally, unused cells can bloat the file size of an Excel workbook, making it more difficult to share with others.
Therefore, it is important to periodically check the unused cells and make immediate preparations to hide them right away.
How to hide unused cells in Excel
Step 1: First of all, select the range of cells that you want to check for unused cells.
Step 2: Once selected, hover your cursor over the ribbon on top of the sheet and click on the Home tab,
Step 3: Once the drop-down menu for editing appears, search for the “Cells Group”
Step 4: After you’ve found the “cells” portion, click the “Visibility” option. This will take you to another drop-down menu.
Step 5: From there, select the options that suit your requirements, either it is “Hide columns” or Hid rows”.
And that’s it! Once you’ve followed these steps, all of your unused cells will be hidden from view and will no longer take up valuable space on your worksheet.
You can always unhide the cells by following the same steps and selecting the “Unhide” option.
However, if you don’t want to hide the unused cells and simply want to get rid of them permanently, then it’s better to go for the “Delete all” option as it will make the process a lot easier and faster.
The Bottom Lines
There you have it! By following these simple steps, you can hide unused cells in Excel and keep your worksheets looking neat and tidy. This can be a handy trick if you want to declutter your worksheet or make it look more polished for a presentation. Just remember, hidden cells are still there, so be careful not to accidentally delete or overwrite them!
