Skip to content

How to protect and unprotect Excel sheets?

  • by
  • 8 min read

For a long time, Microsoft Excel has been a valuable tool for businesses, students and individuals alike, it helps organise, analyse, and present data. However, as the importance of data security continues to grow, it’s crucial to understand how to protect sensitive information in Excel. Excel has many useful features that allow you to protect and unprotect sheets, ensuring that your data remains secure from unauthorised access or accidental modifications.

This article discusses how to protect and unprotect Excel sheets and how to protect and unprotect Excel workbooks.

Below we have discussed.

Also read: How to encrypt an Excel file?


How to protect an Excel sheet?

To protect an Excel sheet, follow the steps below.

Step 1: Click on the Review tab in the toolbar ribbon and then click on the Protect Sheet option in the Protect section.

Step 2: In the protect sheet dialogue window, enter a strong password in the box below Password to unprotect sheet and then under Allow all users of this worksheet to section, checkmark the boxes to allow those actions for users of the worksheet, including yourself. If you don’t check any box, users will only be able to view the worksheet’s content. After you are done, click on the OK button.

If you dont want to password protect the worksheet and just want to protect your sheet from accidental modification by other users or yourself then leave the password box empty, allow permissions as per your preference and click on OK button.

Step 3: It will ask you to confirm the password, retype it, and click the OK button.


How to unprotect Excel sheet?

To unprotect a protected Excel sheet, follow the steps below.

Step 1: Click on the Review tab in the toolbar ribbon and then click on the Unprotect Sheet option in the Protect section.

Alternate Step: Right-click on the Sheet tab located at the bottom left side of the screen, and then in the menu, click on the Unprotect Sheet option.

Step 2: If the sheet is password protected, it will ask you to enter the password, enter the password and click on the OK button. If the sheet is not password protected, clicking on the Unprotect Sheet option will unprotect the sheet.

Also read: How to freeze multiple rows in Excel?


How to unprotect an Excel sheet if you do not know the password?

If you want to unprotect an Excel sheet and have forgotten or don’t know the password, follow the steps below.

The simplest way to unprotect a sheet without the password is to copy and paste the data into a new sheet. This method will work only if the protected spreadsheet allows actions to select locked and unlocked cells.

Step 1: Open the password-protected sheet, select the A1 cell, and then press the Shift + Ctrl + End keys to select all the used cells in the sheet.

Step 2: Press the Ctrl + C keys to copy the selected cells.

Step 3: Create a new Excel file; use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + N keys to create a new one.

Step 4: In the Excel sheet, select the A1 cell and press the Ctrl + V keys to paste the data of the password-protected sheet.


How to protect an Excel workbook?

To protect an Excel workbook, follow the steps below.

Step 1: Click on the Review tab in the toolbar ribbon and then click on the Protect Workbook option in the Protect section.

Step 2: You have only one option available, the Structure option as the Windows option has been greyed out from Excel 2013. The structure option will protect the structure of your workbook and prevent the following actions.

  • Viewing hidden worksheets.
  • Renaming, moving, hiding or deleting sheets.
  • Inserting new sheets and chart sheets. However, users can insert a chart in an existing worksheet.
  • Moving or copying sheets to another workbook.

Enter a strong password in the Password box and then click on the OK button.

If you don’t want to password-protect your workbook, leave the password box empty and click the OK button.

Step 3: If you have entered a password, it will ask you to confirm it, retype the password, and click the OK button.

Also read: What is a Firestick? How does it work?


How to unlock a protected Excel workbook?

To unlock a protected Excel workbook, follow the steps below.

Step 1: Click on the Review tab in the toolbar ribbon and then click on the Protect Workbook option in the Protect section.

Step 2: Enter the password and then click on the OK button.


How to password protect an Excel workbook from opening?

To password-protect an Excel workbook from opening, follow the steps below.

Step 1: Open the workbook in Excel and click on the File tab in the toolbar ribbon.

Step 2: Click on Info, then click on the Protect Workbook button and then in the dropdown menu, click on the Encrypt with Password option.

Step 3: Enter a strong password in the Password box and then click on the OK button. After that, retype the password to confirm it.

Your workbook will be password protected now, and anybody will need the password to open the workbook.

To remove the password from the workbook, follow the same steps: delete the password and click the OK button.

Also read: Fix: Rsync skipping directory


How to password protect an Excel workbook from modification?

To password-protect an Excel workbook from modification, follow the steps below.

Step 1: Open the workbook in Excel and click on the File tab in the toolbar ribbon.

Step 2: Click on the Save As option in the sidebar.

Step 3: In the Save As window, click on the Tools button and then click on the General Options in the menu.

Step 4: Enter a password in the Password to Modify box and checkmark the box beside the recommended Read-only. Retype the password to confirm it, and click on the OK button.

If you want to protect it from opening, enter a password in the Password to Open box.

To remove the password, follow the same steps, delete the password and save the file.

Also read: How to highlight duplicates in Excel?

Akash Singh

Akash Singh

Akash is a law graduate who likes to go for bike rides on the weekends soul-searching for answers to his many existential questions. You can contact him here: singhakash95@pm.me

>