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Excel Troubleshooting: Fixing Corrupted Excel File

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Introduction

“Excel file is corrupt and cannot be opened”. This error message is usually encountered by Windows 10 users when opening a spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010 or earlier versions. 

An Excel file may get corrupt due to several reasons such as virus or malware infection, bad sectors in hard drive on which files are stored, sudden system shutdown or abruptly closing an Excel application while working on a file, etc. 

Whatever be the reason behind Excel file corruption, delay in resolving the issue could mean losing critical data and countless hours of work. So without further ado, let’s check out the solutions to repair and restore a corrupt Excel file on Windows 10 computer. 

How Can You Fix a Corrupt Excel File?

NOTE: Try restoring your Excel file data from a backup file. If the backup file is not available or you haven’t backed up your most recent work, try the following solutions to repair corrupt Excel file.

Below are a few solutions that can help you repair and restore a corrupt workbook:

1. Use Open and Repair Utility

Microsoft Excel’s built-in ‘Open and Repair’ feature can be used for repairing a corrupt workbook, and here’s how:

  1. Open a blank Excel document, and then click File > Open.
  2. Search the location where the workbook is located, and then click Browse.
  3. In Open dialog box, select the file you wish to repair.
  4. Click Open and Repair option from the Open dropdown list. 
  5. Select one of the following options:
    • Click Repair to retrieve as much workbook data as possible.
    • Click Extract Data for extracting values and formulas from the corrupt workbook, when an attempt to repair the workbook fails.

2. Open Excel in Safe Mode

Launch Excel in safe mode by typing ‘Excel_filename.exe / safe’ in the Run window. 

Once you have opened Excel in safe mode, try opening the corrupt workbook. If you’re able to open the workbook, try disabling add-ins or macros (if any) and see if it resolves the issue. 

3. Recover Excel File from Previously Saved Version

If corruption occurs while working on an Excel file but before saving the changes, try recovering the file from the previous (last saved) version. For this, follow these steps:

  1. Right-click the corrupt Excel file, and then click Properties.
  2. In Excel File Properties window, click the Previous Versions tab.
  3. In Previous Versions dialog box, find and select the last saved version of the Excel file. 

If you can open the corrupt Excel file, try saving the file in SYLK format, as it may help you filter out corrupt elements. Follow these steps to save the file in SYLK format:

NOTE: This method usually works in case corruption has taken place due to printer error.

  1. Open a blank Excel file, and then click File > Save As.
  2. In Save As dialog box, browse the path where the corrupt Excel file is saved and select the file. 
  3. Next, select SYLK (Symbolic Link) from the ‘Save as type’ dropdown list, and then click Save.
  4. If a message prompts you that saving in SYLK format may result in loss of some features, click Yes.
    • Note: You can only save an active worksheet in SYLK format. So, if you have multiple worksheets in an Excel file, you’ll need to save each worksheet individually and repeat the procedure.
  5. Again click the File tab, and then click Open.
  6. In Open dialog box, select and open the SLK file that you have saved.
  7. Once the file is open, click File > Save As.
  8. In Save as window, choose Excel Workbook from the ‘Select as type’ dropdown.

5. Reset Calculation Option to Manual

Try resetting the calculation option from automatic to manual. Doing so, may open the Excel workbook as it won’t be recalculated. To change the calculation option follow these steps:

  1. Open a Blank workbook.
  2. Click File > Options.
  3. In Excel Options window, click Formulas.
  4. In the screen that appears, select Manual under Calculation options, and then press OK. 

You can try retrieving information from corrupt workbook by using external links. For this approach, follow these steps:

  1. Open Excel, select File > Open.
  2. Browse the folder containing the corrupt workbook.
  3. Right-click the workbook, click Copy, and then press Cancel.
  4. Next, click New, and then click a Blank workbook. 
  5. In the new workbook, type =File Name!A1 in cell A1, and then hit Enter. 
    • NOTE: Here ‘File Name’ is the name of the corrupt Excel workbook that you copied in Step 3. Replace the file name with the name of your workbook. 
  6. When any of the below-listed dialog box appears, perform the following: 
    • In Update Values dialog box, select the corrupt workbook, and then hit OK.
    • In Select Sheet dialog box, select the appropriate sheet, and then press OK.
  7. Select cell A1, click Home, and then click Copy.
  8. In cell A1, select an area that is about the same size as the range of cells that contain data in the corrupt workbook. 
  9. Again, click Home > Paste.
  10. Repeat copying all the cells, by clicking Home and then Copy. 
  11. Click the arrow below Paste on Home menu, and then click Values under Paste Values.

NOTE: Pasting values will remove any links to the corrupt workbook and provide you with data. 

This method can only recover cell values in the corrupt workbook. It cannot recover formulas, but only its results. 

7. Try Opening Workbook in WordPad or Word

Another quick fix that can help you recover data from corrupt Excel file is to open the file in WordPad. If this solution works, WordPad will convert the data to text. But, keep in mind, this method cannot recover formulas. However, it can recover macros. 

You can also try to open the Excel file in Word, but it might not deliver expected results. Also, Word wouldn’t recover macros. For this method to work, you must install a Microsoft Word to Excel converter. 

8. Use an Anti-virus Software

If your Excel file has turned corrupt due to a virus attack, then using an anti-virus software might help fix the issue. The software will eliminate any viruses or malware that might be preventing the document from opening.

For details on the best antivirus software for Windows 10, refer to this link. If none of the above solution works, use an advanced Excel repair method that can save your efforts and time in making the damaged file usable again.

Conclusion

An Excel file may get corrupt due to myriad of reasons ranging from virus attack and bad sectors on hard drive to human errors and abrupt closing of application. Fortunately, there are ways to repair the corrupt file and/or recover its data. Some of these ways include using Excel built-in repair options, recovering file from last saved version, resetting calculation option to manual, using macro to extract corrupt workbook data, using an efficient workarounds.