Excel keeps crashing: 6 fixes

Excel is great for analyzing complex data sets, but only if your PC has the power to handle it. Large amounts of data or heavy calculations can cause Excel to crash.

This could slow you down, interrupt your workflow, or worse, you could lose data. If Excel keeps crashing, you need to troubleshoot the cause and fix it.

Update for Office and Windows

Excel may crash due to an error. It might be time to check for new Microsoft Office updates or Windows updates that may contain bug fixes to prevent further crashes or freezes.

To update Office:

1. Launch Excel or other Office application on your PC.
2. Click File>Account and then under the Product Information section click the Update Options button and select from the drop down list Click to update immediately.
3. It will search for updates. If found, the Update Wizard will prompt you to close all open Office applications. Once complete, your apps will restart and you'll see a message telling you that Office is up to date.
4. You also need to make sure Windows is updated. To update Windows 11 manually, go to Start > Settings > Windows Update and click the Check for updates button.
5. Downloads any updates it finds. Please note that your computer may restart during this process.

Start Excel in Safe Mode

Windows isn't the only device you can start in Safe Mode. You can also resolve crashes by opening Excel (and other Office applications) in Office's safe mode. Running Excel in safe mode allows you to run the program with limited functionality and bypass add-ins that may cause problems.

To start Excel in Safe Mode, use the following steps:

1. Close your spreadsheet and create a shortcut on your desktop or other easily accessible location .
2. Now, hold down the Ctrl key and double-click the file to launch it.
3. A message will appear to verify if you want to open it in Safe Mode - click Yes.
4. Alternatively, you can start Excel in safe mode by pressing Windows key R to open Run.
5. In Run, type excel.exe /safe and click OK.
6. When Excel opens in safe mode, you'll see it listed at the top of the spreadsheet.

Removing add-ins from Excel

If you can get work done in Excel after starting in Safe Mode, there may be a problem with the installed add-in.

To disable an add-in from Excel:

1. Click File > Options.
2. Click Add-ins in the left column of the Excel Options window.
3. Click the Manage drop-down menu and select COM Add-ins, then click the Execute button .
4. Now, uncheck each available add-on and click OK. If Excel stops crashing after this, you can go back and add one at a time until you find the troublesome add-in.

Disable Hardware Graphics Acceleration

Adding basic animations to your spreadsheets can certainly make them come alive. However, they require additional processing and system resources. Animations may require hardware graphics acceleration, which may cause crashing issues, especially on laptops and computers with lower system specifications.

To disable graphics acceleration, use the following steps:

1. Launch Excel on the desktop and click File > Options.
2. When the Excel Options screen appears, click the Advanced tab in the left column.
3. Scroll down the options in the right panel until you find the "Display" section. There, check the Disable hardware graphics acceleration box.

Restart Excel and see if it continues to crash.

Repair your Microsoft Office installation

Is Excel still crashing? Unfortunately, at this point, it may indicate a problem with your Office installation. If your Office installation files are corrupted, it's time to repair them.

You can repair your Microsoft Office installation by doing the following:

1. Use the keyboard shortcutWindows key RStart "Run"Dialog box.
2. In Run, type appwiz.cpl and click OK.
3. When the list of installed applications appears, highlight Microsoft Office or Microsoft 365 (if you have a subscription) and click ## at the top #Change button.
Next, select the
4. Quick Fix option at the top and click the Repair button.
A second screen will appear to verify that you want to run the
5. Quick Fix. Please note that you will not be able to use Office applications during this process - click Fix.
You can check the progress during the repair process. The amount of time required varies from system to system.
6. 
You will be notified when the repair is completed. Click the
7. Close button to exit and see if Excel continues to crash.
If Excel continues to crash after that, go back and fix it, but this time select the "
8. Online Repair " option. This is a more thorough repair that gets lost or corrupted files directly from Microsoft servers.

It's also important to note that either fix shouldn't affect your files, but make sure you back them up to an external drive like OneDrive or a service like Backblaze.

Using Microsoft Excel

You don’t need Excel to crash when you are creating a giant spreadsheet full of data. However, if Excel keeps freezing, using the steps above should make it work again.

Starting Excel in Safe Mode is a great solution for getting it done in a pinch. Afterwards, you can do more complex troubleshooting, such as repairing the installation.

Excel includes several features that allow you to track your data and present it in a user-friendly way. For example, you can visually represent data in a spreadsheet by creating a pie chart or a bar chart.

The above is the detailed content of Excel keeps crashing: 6 fixes. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!