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How do I hide a formula in Excel 2016 without protecting sheet?

Author

William Cox

Published Mar 09, 2026

How do I hide a formula in Excel 2016 without protecting sheet?

MS Excel 2016: Hide formulas from appearing in the edit bar
  1. To hide the formulas, first you'll need to un-protect all of the cells on your sheet.
  2. When the Format Cells window appears, select the Protection tab.
  3. Next, select the cell(s) that you wish to hide the formulas for.
  4. When the Format Cells window appears, select the Protection tab.

Likewise, people ask, how do you hide a formula in Excel without protecting the sheet?

Prevent a formula from displaying in the formula bar

  1. Select the range of cells whose formulas you want to hide.
  2. Click Home > Format > Format Cells.
  3. On the Protection tab, select the Hidden check box.
  4. Click OK.
  5. Click Review > Protect Sheet.

Secondly, how do I hide the formula bar in Excel? If you want to show the Formula Bar, check the Formula Bar option; if you want to hide the Formula Bar, uncheck it. Note: You can also get this Show Formula bar option by clicking the File (or Office button) > Options > Advanced > Display > Show Formula bar.

One may also ask, how do I hide a formula in Excel but allow input?

When the Format Cells window appears, select the Protection tab. Uncheck the "Locked" checkbox. Click on the OK button. Next, select the cell(s) that you wish to hide the formulas for.

How do you AutoFit in Excel?

Apply AutoFit in Ribbon if you do not have Classic Menu for Office

  1. First of all select the cells that you need to apply AutoFit feature to;
  2. Click the Home tab;
  3. Go to the Cells group;
  4. Click the Format button;
  5. Then you will view the AutoFit Row Height item and AutoFit Column Width item.

How do I protect only certain cells in Excel?

How to Lock All the Cells in an Excel Worksheet
  1. Navigate to the Review tab.
  2. Click Protect Sheet.
  3. Click OK to protect the sheet.
  4. Select all the cells you don't want to be locked.
  5. Right-click on your selection, select Format Cells, and click on the Protection tab.

How can you quickly copy a formula to a range of cells?

Just use the old good copy & paste way:
  1. Click the cell with the formula to select it.
  2. Press Ctrl + C to copy the formula.
  3. Select a cell or a range of cells where you want to paste the formula (to select non-adjacent ranges, press and hold the Ctrl key).
  4. Press Ctrl + V to paste the formula.

How do I show a value instead of formula in Excel?

Show Formulas in Excel Instead of the Values
  1. Go to the 'File' tab.
  2. Click on 'Options'.
  3. In the left pane, select Advanced.
  4. On the right, scroll down to the 'Display options for this worksheet' section.
  5. From the drop down, select the worksheet in which you want to show the formulas instead of values.

How do you protect a formula but allow input?

Here are the steps to protect the worksheet:
  1. Go to the Review tab.
  2. Click on Protect Sheet.
  3. In the Protect Sheet dialog box, make sure the option 'Protect worksheet and contents of the locked cells' is checked.
  4. [Optional] Specify the password.
  5. Click OK.

How do you lock formulas in sheets?

If you only need to lock one, or more, formula cells in a spreadsheet, follow these instructions:
  1. Open the Protected Sheets and ranges dialogue box.
  2. Select the Range tab.
  3. then click the Select data range option shown in the screenshot below.
  4. Left-click the mouse and drag the cursor over the formula cells you need to lock.

How do you lock a cell in a formula?

For locking the cell reference of a single formula cell, the F4 key can help you easily. Select the formula cell, click on one of the cell reference in the Formula Bar, and press the F4 key. Then the selected cell reference is locked.

How do I change an absolute reference in Excel?

Open Microsoft Excel. Highlight the cell containing the formula you want to have changed into an absolute or relative reference. In the formula box as shown below, click the formula box or highlight the formula and press the F4 key to switch between an absolute and relative cell reference.

How do I protect all formulas in a workbook?

Press CTRL+A (to select all cells), go to FORMAT, CELLS, and under the PROTECTION TAB, uncheck the LOCKED box. Then press CTRL+G, (go to), SPECIAL, click FORMULAS and click OK. Then go to FORMAT, CELLS, and under the PROTECTION TAB, check the LOCKED box. Then go to TOOLS, PROTECTION and choose PROTECT SHEET.

How do I lock certain columns in Excel?

Follow these steps to lock cells in a worksheet:
  1. Select the cells you want to lock.
  2. On the Home tab, in the Alignment group, click the small arrow to open the Format Cells popup window.
  3. On the Protection tab, select the Locked check box, and then click OK to close the popup.

How do I lock formatting in Excel 2016?

Just follow these steps:
  1. Select all the cells in the worksheet.
  2. Choose Cells from the Format menu.
  3. Make sure the Protection tab is displayed.
  4. Clear the Locked checkbox.
  5. Click on OK to close the dialog box.
  6. Choose Protection from the Tools menu, and then choose Protect Sheet from the submenu.

How do you unlock a formula in Excel?

Here's how to lock or unlock cells in Microsoft Excel 2016 and 2013.
  1. Select the cells you wish to modify.
  2. Choose the “Home” tab.
  3. In the “Cells” area, select “Format” > “Format Cells“.
  4. Select the “Protection” tab.
  5. Uncheck the box for “Locked” to unlock the cells. Check the box to lock them. Select “OK“.

How do I unhide the formula bar in Excel 2007?

To control display of the Formula Bar, follow these steps:
  1. Display the Excel Options dialog box. (In Excel 2007 click the Office button and then click Excel Options.
  2. At the left side of the dialog box click Advanced.
  3. Scroll down until you see the Display options.
  4. Click on the Show Formula Bar check box.
  5. Click on OK.

How do you hide formulas?

To hide formulas:
  1. Select the cells for which you to want to hide the formulas.
  2. Right-click the cell (or cells) and choose Format Cells.
  3. In the Format Cells dialog box, click the Protection tab.
  4. Check the Hidden box. Note: Hidden is what prevents the user from seeing the formula.
  5. Click OK.

How do you show insert function in Excel?

You can display the Insert Function dialog box in three ways:
  1. Click the Insert Function button on the Formulas Ribbon.
  2. On the Formula Bar, click the smaller Insert Function button (which looks like fx).
  3. Click the small arrow to the right of the AutoSum feature on the Formulas Ribbon, and select More Functions.

What is a formula bar?

A toolbar at the top of the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet window that you can use to enter or copy an existing formula in to cells or charts. It is labeled with function symbol (fx). By clicking the Formula Bar, or when you type an equal (=) symbol in a cell, the Formula Bar will activate.

What is a formula in Excel?

A formula is an expression which calculates the value of a cell. Functions are predefined formulas and are already available in Excel. For example, cell A3 below contains a formula which adds the value of cell A2 to the value of cell A1.