Column will not unhide in excel

If the first row (row 1) or column (column A) is not displayed in the worksheet, it is a little tricky to unhide it because there is no easy way to select that row or column. You can select the entire worksheet, and then unhide rows or columns (Home tab, Cells group, Format button, Hide & Unhide command), but that displays all hidden rows and columns in your worksheet, which you may not want to do. Instead, you can use the Name box or the Go To command to select the first row and column.

  1. To select the first hidden row or column on the worksheet, do one of the following:

    • In the Name Box next to the formula bar, type A1, and then press ENTER.

      Name box showing A1 to unhide column A and row 1

    • On the Home tab, in the Editing group, click Find & Select, and then click Go To. In the Reference box, type A1, and then click OK.

      Excel  Ribbon Image

  2. On the Home tab, in the Cells group, click Format.

    Excel  Ribbon Image

  3. Do one of the following:

    • Under Visibility, click Hide & Unhide, and then click Unhide Rows or Unhide Columns.

    • Under Cell Size, click Row Height or Column Width, and then in the Row Height or Column Width box, type the value that you want to use for the row height or column width.

      Tip: The default height for rows is 15, and the default width for columns is 8.43.

If you don’t see the first column (column A) or row (row 1) in your worksheet, it might be hidden. Here’s how to unhide it. In this picture column A and row 1 are hidden.

Hidden first column and row

To unhide column A, right-click the column B header or label and pick Unhide Columns.

Unhide option

To unhide row 1, right-click the row 2 header or label and pick Unhide Rows.

Tip: If you don’t see Unhide Columns or Unhide Rows, make sure you’re right-clicking inside the column or row label.

Watch Video – How to Unhide Columns in Excel

If you prefer written instruction instead, below is the tutorial.

Hidden rows and columns can be quite irritating at times.

Especially if someone else has hidden these and you forget to unhide it (or even worse, you don’t know how to unhide these).

While I can’t do anything about the first issue, I can show you how to unhide columns in Excel (the same techniques can also be used to unhide rows).

It may happen that one of the methods of unhiding columns/rows may not work for you. In that case, it is good to know the alternatives that can work.

There are many different situations where you may need to unhide the columns:

  1. Multiple columns are hidden and you want to unhide all columns at once
  2. You want to unhide a specific column (in between two columns)
  3. You want to unhide the first column

Let’s go through each for these scenarios and see how to unhide the columns.

Unhide All Columns At One Go

If you have a worksheet that has multiple hidden columns, you don’t need to go hunt each one and bring it to light.

You can do that all in one go.

And there are multiple ways to do this.

Using the Format Option

Here are the steps to unhide all columns at one go:

  1. Click on the small triangle at the top left of the worksheet area. This will select all the cells in the worksheet.
  2. Right-click anywhere in the worksheet area.
  3. Click on Unhide.

No matter where that pesky column is hidden, this will unhide it.

Note: You can also use the keyboard shortcut Control A A (hold the control key and hit the A key twice) to select all the cells in the worksheet.

Using VBA

If you need to do this often, you can also use VBA to get this done.

The below code will unhide column in the worksheet.

Sub UnhideColumns ()
Cells.EntireColumn.Hidden = False
EndSub

You need to place this code in the VB Editor (in a module).

If you want to learn how to do this with VBA, read a detailed guide on how to run a macro in Excel.

Note: To save time, you can save this macro in the Personal Macro Workbook and add it to the quick access toolbar. This will allow you to unhide all columns with a single click.

Using a Keyboard Shortcut

If you’re more comfortable using keyboard shortcuts, there is a way to unhide all columns with a few keystrokes.

Here are the steps:

  1. Select any cell in the worksheet.
  2. Press Control-A-A (hold the control key and press A twice). This will select all the cells in the worksheet
  3. Use the following shortcut – ALT H O U L (one key at a time)

If you can get hang of this keyboard shortcut, it could be a lot faster to unhide columns.

Note: The reason you need to press A twice when holding the control key is that sometimes when you press Control A, it only selects the used range in Excel (or the area that has the data) and you need to press the A again to select the entire worksheet.

Another keyword shortcut that works for some and not for others is Control 0 (from a numeric keypad) or Control Shift 0 from a non-numeric keypad. It used to work for me earlier but doesn’t work anymore. Here is some discussion on why it may happen. I suggest you use the longer (ALT HOUL) shortcut that works every time.

Unhide Columns in Between Selected Columns

There are multiple ways you can quickly unhide columns in between selected columns. The methods shown here are useful when you want to unhide a specific column(s).

Let’s go through these one-by-one (and you can choose to use that you find the best).

Using a Keyboard Shortcut

Below are the steps:

  1. Select the columns that contain the hidden columns in between. For example, if you are trying to unhide column C, then select column B and D.How to Unhide Columns in Excel - Select Columns
  2. Use the following shortcut – ALT H O U L (one key at a time)

This will instantly unhide the columns.How to Unhide Columns in Excel - Shortcuts Demo

Using the Mouse

One quick and easy way to unhide a column is to use the mouse.

Below are the steps:

Using the Format Option in the Ribbon

Under the home tab in the ribbon, there are options to hide and unhide columns in Excel.

Here is how to use it:

Another way of accessing this option is by selecting the columns and right clicking using the mouse. In the menu that appears, select the unhide option.

How to Unhide Columns in Excel - left Click Menu

Using VBA

Below is the code that you can use to unhide columns in between the selected columns.

Sub UnhideAllColumns()
Selection.EntireColumn.Hidden = False
End Sub

You need to place this code in the VB Editor (in a module).

If you want to learn how to do this with VBA, read a detailed guide on how to run a macro in Excel.

Note: To save time, you can save this macro in the Personal Macro Workbook and add it to the quick access toolbar. This will allow you to unhide all columns with a single click.

By Changing the Column Width

There is a possibility that none of these methods work when you try to unhide column in Excel. It happens when you change the Column Width to 0. In that case, even if you unhide the column, it’s width still remains 0, and hence you can’t see it or select it.

Below are the steps to change the column width:

This is by far the most reliable way to unhide columns in Excel. If everything fails, just change the column width.

Unhide the First Column

Unhiding the first column can be a little bit tricky.

You can use many of the methods covered above, with a little bit of extra work.

Let me show you a few ways.

Use the Mouse to Drag the First Column

Even when the first column is hidden, Excel allows you to select it and drag it to make it visible.

To do this, hover the cursor on the left edge of column B (or whatever is the leftmost visible column).

The cursor would change into a double arrow pointer as shown below.

hover the cursor on hidden column

Hold the left mouse button and drag the cursor to the right. You will see that it unhides the hidden column.

Unhide Column by dragging the mouse cursor

Go to a Cell in the First Column and Unhide it

But how do you go to any cell in the column that’s hidden?

Good question!

You use the Name Box (it’s left to the formula bar).

Name Box

Enter A1 in the Name Box. It will instantly take you to the A1 cell. Since the first column is hidden, you won’t be able to see it, but be assured that it’s selected (you’ll still see a thin line just left of B1).

Once the hidden column cell is selected, follow the below steps:

  • Click the Home tab.
  • In the Cells group, click on Format.
  • Hover the cursor on the ‘Hide & Unhide’ option.
  • Click on ‘Unhide Columns’

Select the First Column and Unhide it

Again! How do you select it when it’s hidden?

Well, there are many different ways to skin the cat.

And this is just another method in my kitty (this is the last cat sounding reference I promise).

When you select the leftmost visible cell and drag the cursor to the left (where there are row numbers), you end up selecting all the hidden columns (even when you don’t see it).

Unhide columns by selecting using mouse drag

Once you have select all the hidden columns, follow the below steps:

  • Click the Home tab.
  • In the Cells group, click on Format.
  • Hover the cursor on the ‘Hide & Unhide’ option.
  • Click on ‘Unhide Columns’

Check The Number of Hidden Columns

Excel has an ‘Inspect Document’ feature that is meant to quickly scan the workbook and give you some details about it.

And one of the things that you can do that ‘Inspect Document’ is to quickly check how many hidden columns or hidden rows are there in the workbook.

This might be useful when you get the workbook from someone and want to quickly inspect it.

Below are the steps on how to check the total number of hidden columns or hidden rows:

  1. Open the workbook
  2. Click on the File tab
  3. In the Info options, click on the ‘Check for Issues’ button (it’s next to the Inspect Workbook text).Click on the Check for issues button
  4. Click on Inspect Document.Click on Inspect Document option
  5. In the Document Inspector, make sure Hidden Rows and Columns option is checked.Make Sure Hidden rows and columns is checked
  6. Click the Inspect button.Click on Inspect Button

This will show you the total number of hidden rows and columns.

Number of Hidden columns found reported

It also gives you the option to delete all these hidden rows/columns. This can be the case if there is extra data that has been hidden and is not needed. Instead of finding hidden rows and columns, you can quickly delete these from this option.

You May Also Like the following Excel Tips/Tutorials:

  • How to Insert Multiple Rows in Excel – 4 Methods.
  • How to Quickly Insert New Cells in Excel.
  • Keyboard & Mouse Tricks that will Reinvent the Way You Excel.
  • How to Hide a Worksheet in Excel.
  • How to Unhide Sheets in Excel (All In One Go)
  • Excel Text to Columns (7 Amazing things you can do with it)
  • How to Lock Cells in Excel
  • How to Lock Formulas in Excel


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Quickly display one or more hidden columns in your Excel spreadsheet


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  • Using the Column Drag Tool
  • |

  • Using Right Click
  • |

  • Unhiding One Column with the Name Box
  • |

  • Unhiding All Columns
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  • Q&A
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  • Tips

Are you having trouble viewing certain columns in your Excel workbook? This wikiHow guide shows you how to display a hidden column in Microsoft Excel. You can do this on both the Windows and Mac versions of Excel. There are multiple simple methods to unhide hidden columns. You can drag the columns, use the right-click menu, or format the columns.

Things You Should Know

  • Hover your cursor to the right of the hidden columns, then click and drag to the right to unhide them.
  • Alternatively, select the columns adjacent to the hidden columns. Then right-click and select Unhide.
  • You can also go to Home > Format > Hide & Unhide to show hidden columns.
  1. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 1

    1

    Hover your cursor directly to the right of the hidden columns. When your cursor is between the column letters adjacent to the hidden columns, the cursor will change into two parallel lines with two arrows pointing horizontally.

    • You can identify hidden columns by looking for two lines between column letters.
    • Your cursor needs to be to the right of the two lines for this method. Placing the cursor to the left will increase the column size of the left adjacent column.
  2. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 2

    2

    Click and drag to the right. This will unhide the hidden columns between the adjacent columns.

    • Alternatively, you can double-click to immediately unhide the hidden column.

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    3

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  1. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 4

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    Select the columns on both sides of the hidden columns. To do this:

    • Hold down the Shift key while you click both letters above the column
    • Click the left column next to the hidden columns.
    • Click the right column next to the hidden columns.
    • The columns will be highlighted when you successfully select them.
    • For example, if column B is hidden, you should click A and then C while holding down Shift.
  2. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 5

    2

    Right-click either of the selected columns. This will open the right-click pop up menu.

  3. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 6

    3

    Select Unhide in the right-click menu. The hidden columns between the two selected columns will be unhidden.

    • For more helpful excel tricks, check out our intro guide to Excel.
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  1. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 7

    1

    Click the Name Box. This is the drop down box to the left of the formula box.[1]

    • This method is great for unhiding the first column (A) since there isn’t a column to its left that you can select to access the right-click Unhide menu option.
  2. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 8

    2

    Type A1 in the Name Box and press Enter. Replace A with the letter of the column you want to unhide.

  3. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 9

    3

    Click the Home tab. It’s in the upper-left corner of the Excel window.

  4. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 10

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    Click Find & Select. This is in the «Editing» group in the Home tab. A drop down menu will open.

  5. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 11

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    Select Go To. This will open the «Go To» window.

  6. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 12

    6

    Type A1 in the «Reference» box and click OK.

  7. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 13

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    Click the Home tab. It’s in the upper-left corner of the Excel window.

  8. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 14

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    Click Format. This button is in the «Cells» section of the Home tab; you’ll find this section on the right side of the toolbar. A drop down menu will appear.[2]

  9. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 15

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    Select Hide & Unhide. This option is below the «Visibility» heading in the Format drop down menu. Selecting it will open a pop up menu.

  10. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 16

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    Click Unhide Columns. It’s near the bottom of the Hide & Unhide menu. Doing so will immediately unhide the column you selected in the Name Box.

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  1. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 17

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    Click the triangle in the top left corner of the spreadsheet. This is next to the row 1 label and column A label. Clicking the triangle will select the entire spreadsheet.

    • Hiding columns can be useful for when you have data you don’t need at the moment, but want to keep in the spreadsheet. For example, if you’re tracking your bills in Excel, you might want to hide purchase categories when you’re only working with the sum totals.
  2. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 18

    2

    Click the Home tab. It’s in the upper-left corner of the Excel window.

  3. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 19

    3

    Click Format. This button is in the «Cells» section of the Home tab; you’ll find this section on the right side of the toolbar. A drop down menu will appear.

  4. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 20

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    Select Hide & Unhide. This option is below the «Visibility» heading in the Format drop down menu. Selecting it will open a pop up menu.

  5. Image titled Unhide Columns in Excel Step 21

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    Click Unhide Columns. It’s near the bottom of the Hide & Unhide menu. Doing so will immediately unhide every hidden column in the sheet.

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Add New Question

  • Question

    What do I do if the hidden columns are A and B?

    Community Answer

    You can select the whole document and do the steps above to retrieve all hidden columns.

  • Question

    What do I do if I’ve followed the instructions provided, but I still cannot unhide column A in Excel?

    Community Answer

    Try unfreezing the column and unhiding, or freezing then unfreezing then unhiding. This process will work.

  • Question

    If column A is hidden in excel, how do I find it?

    Community Answer

    Just use the search bar on top and type there «A1» the hidden column should appear.

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  • If some columns are still not visible after you’ve attempted to unhide the columns, the width of the columns may be set to «0» or another small value. To widen the column, position your cursor on the right border of the column, and drag the column to increase its width.

  • If you want to unhide all hidden columns on an Excel spreadsheet, click on the «Select All» button, which is the blank rectangle to the left of column «A» and above row «1.» You can then proceed with the remaining steps in this article to unhide those columns.

Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

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About This Article

Article SummaryX

1. Open your Excel document.
2. Select the columns on both sides of the hidden column.
3. Click Home
4. Click Format
5. Select Hide & Unhide
6. Click Unhide Columns

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Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 666,342 times.

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While doing data analysis in excel you would have noticed that all the data is not important for the end user (can be your boss).

Some of the columns are used merely for calculation purpose and that’s why it’s better to hide these columns as they create un-necessary confusions.

But now when it comes to unhide these columns, there are few complications. In this post I will show you a few ways by which you can easily unhide your hidden columns in Excel.

So here we go:

Un-hiding Columns in Excel the Easy Way

This is the easiest way to unhide columns in excel. Follow the below steps to use this method:

How to Unhide Columns in Excel

  1. First of all select one column on either side of the hidden column.
  2. Now, with all these columns selected right-click on the column header.
  3. This will open a popup menu, select the ‘unhide’ option and the hidden columns will be visible.

Unhide Columns in Excel Using the Shortcut

Actually, Microsoft Excel has provided certain shortcut keys for hiding rows and columns in your spreadsheets. These shortcut keys are in the below table:

Shortcut Key Description
CTRL+9 Hides the selected rows.
CTRL+0 Hides the selected columns.
CTRL+SHIFT+9 Unhides the hidden rows within the selection.
CTRL+SHIFT+0 Unhides the hidden columns within the selection.

The procedure of using these shortcut keys is quite simple. First, select one column on either side of the hidden column and then press the shortcut key.

Unhide Column or Rows shortcut keys not working?

Many Windows 8 and Windows 10 users have reported that the shortcut key for un-hiding the hidden columns doesn’t work on their systems.

Let’s understand why this happens. Microsoft Windows 8 and Windows 10 operating systems have assigned the ‘CTRL+SHIFT’ keys for Regional/ Language settings for changing the keyboard layouts. This functionality probably assigns numbers to different layouts.

So, the root of this problem is that whenever you press the column un-hiding shortcut key your OS gulps the keys and hence it interferes with the functionality of Microsoft Excel.

How to resolve this issue

The resolution of this issue is pretty obvious and that is changing the Keyboard Layout shortcut. Follow the below steps:

  1. First open the ‘Control Panel’, navigate to the ‘Change keyboards or other input methods’ link.
  2. Now a ‘Region and Language’ dialog box opens, select the ‘Keyboard and Language’ Tab and click on the ‘Change Keyboard’ button.
  3. Next, a new window ‘Text Services and Input Languages’ opens, here select the ‘Advance Key Settings’ tab and then click the ‘Change Key Sequence’ button.
  4. Under ‘Switch Keyboard Layout’, set the radio button to Not Assigned (or one of the other options, if you need this feature to be available).
  5. Click the ‘Ok’ button and now the unhide column shortcut key will start working in Excel.

This resolution is suggested in the Microsoft Knowledge Base article.

Unhide Columns or Rows in Excel using a VBA script

If you want to unhide your spreadsheet columns by using a code then you can use the following macro for this task:

Sub Unhide_AllColumns() 
ActiveSheet.Cells.EntireColumn.Hidden = False
End Sub

This small macro will unhide all the hidden columns in your active worksheet. If you also want this macro to unhide all the rows as well then simply add a line:

ActiveSheet.Cells.EntireRow.Hidden = False

So, these are some of the ways to Unhide Columns in Excel. Do share if you know any other ways to do the same.

7 Methods to Unhide Columns in Excel

By hiding the data, the selected columns disappear from the display. However, the labels of the remaining columns stay the same. In addition, a thick bar in the column header area appears to indicate the hidden columns.

It is essential to know the techniques to unhide data. The seven ways to unhide Excel columns are stated as follows:

You can download this Unhide Columns Excel Template here – Unhide Columns Excel Template

  1. Home tab of Excel ribbon
  2. Shortcut key
  3. Context menu
  4. Column width
  5. Ctrl+G (go to) command
  6. Ctrl+F (find) command
  7. Double-line icon
Table of contents
  • 7 Methods to Unhide Columns in Excel
    • Unhide the First Column in Excel
    • Locate and Unhide the Hidden Columns
    • Create a Custom View
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Recommended Articles

In the given techniques, the method names followed by the steps to unhide are listed.

Method #1–Home Tab of Excel Ribbon

  • Select the columns to the left and right of the hidden column.
  • In the Home tab, under the “cells” group, click the “format” dropdown.
  • From the “hide and unhide” option, select “unhide columns.”

Method #2–Shortcut Key

  • Select the columns to the left and right of the hidden column.
  • Press the shortcut “Alt H O U L.” Press one key at a time.

Unhide Column step 6

Method #3Context Menu

  • Select the columns to the left and right of the hidden column.
  • Right-click on the selected columns and choose “unhide.”

Method #4Column Width

  • Select the columns to the left and right of the hidden column.
  • Right-click on the selected columns and choose “column width.”
  • Enter any number as the “column width.”

Method #5Ctrl+G (Go To) Command

In the succeeding image, column B and C are hidden.

  • In the Home tab, click “find and select” drop-down and choose “go to.” Alternatively, press the shortcut key F5.
  • Specify any cell reference of the hidden column like B1:C1 in the “go to” dialog box. Click “Ok.”
  • Choose any preceding technique (methods #1 to #4) to unhide columns B and C.

step 9

Method #6Ctrl+F (Find) Command

In the succeeding image, column B and C are hidden.

  • Press “Ctrl+F” and the “find and replace” dialog box appears.
  • Enter the data of one of the hidden cells in the “find what” box.
  • Click “options>>” and select the check box “match entire cell contents.”
  • Click “find next” and close the “find and replace” dialog box.
  • Select any preceding technique (methods #1 to #4) to unhide columns B and C.

Note: This method works in case the cell referenceCell reference in excel is referring the other cells to a cell to use its values or properties. For instance, if we have data in cell A2 and want to use that in cell A1, use =A2 in cell A1, and this will copy the A2 value in A1.read more is unknown and the cell data is known.

step 10

Method #7Double-line Icon

  • Enter a single cell reference of the hidden column in the “name” box. This is the box to the left side of the formula bar.
  • Press the “Enter” key.
  • Select the columns to the left and right of the hidden column.
  • Double-click the double-line icon (having arrows pointing to the left and right) in-between the column labels. Alternatively, follow method#1 to unhide the column.

Unhide the First Column in Excel

It is difficult to select and unhide the first column (column A). To unhide all the hidden columns in one go, follow method #1.

The steps to unhide only the first column are listed as follows:

  1. Type A1 in the name box (shown in the succeeding image) and press the “Enter” key. Alternatively, in the Home tab, click “find and select” drop-down and choose “go to.”
  2. In the Home tab, under the “cells” group, click the “format” dropdown.
  3. From the “hide and unhide” option, select “unhide columns.”

step 14

Locate and Unhide the Hidden Columns

The steps to locate and unhide the hidden columns are listed as follows:

  • Select the entire sheet.
  • In the Home tab, click “find and select” drop-down and choose “go to.” Alternatively, click “go to special.”
  • Click “special” and select the check box “visible cells only.” Click “Ok.”

step 11

  • The visible part of the table is highlighted (shown in the succeeding image). Moreover, a line between the column labels appears that shows the hidden columns.
  • Select the highlighted part and follow any preceding technique (methods #1 to #4) to unhide columns B and C.

step 12

Create a Custom View

With the “custom view,” a user can save particular display settings. For instance, one user may want to hide columns while the other may wish to view the entire data in one go.

The steps to create a “custom view” are listed as follows:

  • In the View tab, click “custom views,” under the “workbook views” group.
  • Click “add” and in the “add view” dialog box, enter a name for the view you want to create. The succeeding image shows the “custom view” titled “my view.”
  • In “include in view,” select the settings of the view and click “Ok.”
  • The “custom view” titled “my view” is created. Every time you select “my view” and click “show,” the display settings of “my view” become visible.

Hence, with the selection of “my view,” the columns A, D, E, F, and G are displayed, as shown in the succeeding image. The columns B and C are hidden because they were not active when “my view” was created.

step 13

Frequently Asked Questions

What does it mean to unhide columns in Excel?

Sometimes it becomes essential to hide particular columns to have a contracted view of the large data set. The option of hiding certain columns is better than deleting them. Before the spreadsheet containing hidden columns goes to the next user, it becomes essential to unhide them for facilitating a complete data view.

The steps to unhide the columns of the entire worksheet in one go are listed as follows:
• Select the entire worksheet by either clicking the triangle to the left of column A or pressing “Ctrl+A.”
• In the Home tab, under the “cells” group, click the “format” dropdown.
• From the “hide and unhide” option, select “unhide columns.”
Hence, all the columns of the worksheet become visible.

How to unhide the first column (column A) in Excel?

The three methods to unhide column A are listed as follows:
1. First method
a. Enter the reference A1 in the name box (to the left of the formula bar). Press the “Enter” key.
b. In the Home tab, under the “cells” group, click the “format” dropdown.
c. From the “hide and unhide” option, select “unhide columns.”
2. Second method
a. Select column B by clicking on its header.
b. Move the cursor to the left of column B till the double-line icon (having arrows pointing to the left and right) in the column header area appears.
c. Drag the double-line icon to the right for expanding column A.
3. Third method
a. In the Home tab, click “find and select” drop-down and choose “go to.” Alternatively, press the shortcut key F5.
b. In the “go to” dialog box, enter A1 in the “reference” box. Click “Ok” and the cell A1 is selected.
c. Follow the steps “b” and “c” of the first method.

How to unhide all Excel rows and columns with a shortcut key?

The steps to unhide all rows and columns with a shortcut key are listed as follows:
• Select the entire worksheet by either clicking the triangle to the left of column A or pressing “Ctrl+A.”
• Press the shortcut “Ctrl+Shift+9” to unhide all rows. Press all keys together.
• Select the entire worksheet again.
• Press the shortcut “Alt H O U L” to unhide all columns. Press one key at a time.

Recommended Articles

This has been a guide to unhide column in Excel. Here we discuss the Top 7 methods to unhide column in Excel along with examples. You may also look at these useful functions in Excel –

  • Adding Columns in ExcelAdding a column in excel means inserting a new column to the existing dataset.read more
  • Move Columns in ExcelMoving a column in excel means shifting the data of one column to another. It is similar to interchanging or swapping the data of two or more columns.read more
  • VBA Delete ColumnIn VBA, deleting columns is simple. To select the column, we must first use the COLUMNS property, and then construct the syntax for the column delete method in VBA as follows: Columns (Column Reference). Deleteread more
  • Excel Rows vs. ColumnsRows are combination of cells that are aligned horizontally, whereas columns are made up of cells that are aligned vertically. Rows are represented by numbers, whereas columns are represented by alphabets and alphabet combinations.read more
  • Excel Date PickerExcel Date Picker is the drop-down calendar that facilitates the user to put the dates in the excel worksheet promptly. It is inserted with the help of ActiveX Control and is not available for the 64-bit version of MS Excel.read more

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Let’s assume the following situation: You have received an Excel workbook from a colleague, client or anyone else but you have the feeling, that some rows or columns are hidden. By that, you’ve already done a good job because it is very difficult to spot from the small lines on the side or top that there are hidden rows or columns. But how do you unhide all rows and columns at the same time?

Method 1: Unhide all rows or columns manually

Hide rows and columns

Many people love the “Hide” function for hiding rows or columns, as it is very easy to use: (the numbers are corresponding with the image)

unhide all rows, unhide, hide, rows, columns, excel, all rows, all columns
  1. Mark the row(s) or column(s) that you want to hide.
  2. Right-click on the row number or column letter and click on “Hide”.
  3. Unfortunately, it has one big disadvantage: You can hardly recognize hidden rows or columns. It’s only symbolized by a thin double line between the row or column number.
  4. A better way for hiding rows or columns is the Group function.

Unhide rows and columns

Unhide all hidden rows by selecting the rows "around" the hidden row. Then right-click on any row number and click on "Unhide".
Unhide all hidden rows by selecting the rows “around” the hidden row. Then right-click on any row number and click on “Unhide”.

So, how to unhide all hidden rows?

  1. Select the whole area in which you suspect hidden rows. Alternatively select the whole worksheet in the top left corner.
  2. >Now double-click on the border between two row numbers (number 5 in the screenshot above). Each row has now it’s minimum size to cover all it’s contents. There is one disadvantage, though: The row height of all selected rows will be reset. So, if you have already set the row heights manually, it will be gone.
  3. Instead of double-clicking according to the number two above you can right-click on the column or row header (that means the column letter above your hidden column or the row number on the left-hand side). Next, click on “Unhide”.

Method 2: Use Professor Excel Tools

hide, unhide, manager, rows, columns, add-in, excel
Hide or unhide rows and columns comfortably with Professor Excel Tools

The Excel add-in Professor Excel Tools provide a function for unhiding all hidden rows and columns on all sheets with one click. Alternatively only unhide the rows or columns on the selected or current sheet.

To use the function, click on “Hidden Rows and Columns” in the “Professor Excel” ribbon. Now you’ll see a window as shown on the screenshot on the right-hand side.


Professor Excel Tools Box

This function is included in our Excel Add-In ‘Professor Excel Tools’

(No sign-up, download starts directly)


Henrik Schiffner is a freelance business consultant and software developer. He lives and works in Hamburg, Germany. Besides being an Excel enthusiast he loves photography and sports.

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Unhide Columns in Excel

Unhide Columns in Excel (Table of Contents)

  • Unhide Columns Using a Mouse
  • Unhide Columns Using a keyboard shortcut
  • Unhide Columns Using the Format option
  • Unhide Columns by Adjusting Column Width
  • Unhide Columns Using VBA Code

What is Unhide Columns in Excel?

Unhide Column option in excel is used for unhiding the already hidden columns. There are some cases wherein a file we have already hidden columns that may be useful for the user to work on. There are unhide columns in the Format option of the Home menu ribbon that helps us to unhide the hidden columns; for this, we need to select the columns in between which hidden column is there, or we can select the complete worksheet to unhide one or more hidden columns.

However, we can un-hide those hidden columns in excel using multiple ways. In this article, I will discuss each one of them in detail.

How to Find the Hidden Columns?

Before I explain how to Unhide Columns in Excel, let me tell you how you can find the hidden columns.

You can download this Unhide Columns Excel Template here – Unhide Columns Excel Template

Look at the below image.

Unhide Columns in Excel

How to Unhide Columns?

Now we know how to find the hidden columns. We can unhide columns in Excel by using multiple ways. I will use the above image for all the examples.

  • Unhide using a mouse.
  • Unhide using the keyboard shortcut
  • Unhide using the Format option
  • Unhide by double click to adjust the column width
  • Unhide by VBA Code

Unhide Columns in Excel Using a Mouse

This is the easiest way to unhide the columns in excel. Follow the below steps to learn this method.

Step 1: Select the entire range you want to unhide. In my case, I have selected the columns from A to F.

Unhide Column( entire range)

Note: You can just select either side column of the hidden columns.

Step 2: Right-click on the column headers.

column headers

Step 3: Click on the Unhide option.

click Unhide option

Step 4: This will instantly unhide all the hidden columns in the range A to G.

Note: All another hidden column other than in the range of A to G remains hidden only.

hidden column

Now we can see the entire column in the worksheet, right from column A to G.

Unhide Columns in Excel Using Key Board Shortcut

There was a golden word from one of my seniors at the start of my career. They told me if you want to learn or masters excel, you need to forget that you have a mouse; you should know everything on the keyboard itself. That word still playing in my mind all the time when I open an excel sheet.

The reason why I told you this is because we can unhide all the columns using a keyboard shortcut.

Step 1: Select the entire range you want to unhide. I have selected the columns from A to F because totally there are 3 columns hidden in this range.

Unhide Column (hidden in this range)

Step 2: Press the key board shortcut ALT + H + O + U + L. use Key Board

Step 3: This will unhide the hidden columns instantly.

unhide the hidden columns

Note: You can use Ctrl + 0 to unhide the columns, but this may not work in many operating systems. Instead of unhiding columns, it will hide columns. It is safe to use the above shortcut.

Unhide Columns in Excel Using Format Option

This method requires a lot of your time than the previous two methods.

Step 1: Select the entire range you want to unhide.

entire range you

Step 2: Go to Home tab > Format > Hide & Unhide > Unhide Columns

Unhide using Format

Step 3: Once you click on this, it will unhide all the hidden columns. This looks like the first method, but it is good to know all the methods to become a master.

all the hidden columns

Unhide Columns in Excel by Adjusting Column Width

I learned this method by myself. I learned this by accident. One day I was working on excel suddenly; I adjusted the column width by selecting the hidden columns ranges. This suddenly unhidden my hidden columns.

Step 1: Select the range from B to F.

hidden columns ranges

Step 2: Place the cursor in between column B and column F. You will see a Plus symbol. Double click on there, and your hidden columns will be unhiding.

Unhide column using Adjusting Column Width 1-2

Step 3: Once you double-clicked, it will unhide all the hidden columns in the range.

double-clicked

Unhide Columns in Excel Using VBA Code

Finally, automate the unhiding columns task by using VBA code. This is just a click of the button once the code has written.

Copy and paste the below code to your module in the Visual Basic Editor Window.

Sub Unhide_Columns()
Worksheets("Main Data").Range("B:F").EntireColumn.Hidden = False
Range("A:F").ColumnWidth = "10"
End Sub

Worksheets (“Main Data”): This is the sheet name we are looking for.

Range (“B: F”): This is the range we are looking to find the hidden columns.

EntireColumn.Hidden = False: Entire column hidden is false means unhide the entire column.

Range (“A: F”).ColumnWidth = “10”: This is adjusting the column width once the columns are unhidden.

Things to Remember

  • Select only the range you want to unhide because it will unhide all the hidden columns if you select the entire worksheet.
  • Shortcut Ctrl + 0 may not work in many operating systems. Always use the shortcut ALT + H + O + U. This is the most reliable shortcut to unhide columns in Excel.
  • If you use a shortcut, it will be just a matter of seconds to unhide columns in excel.
  • If you want the Ctrl + 0 to work properly, you need to change the setting in the control panel.
  • Always hide unwanted data.

Recommended Articles

This has been a guide to Unhide Columns in Excel. Here we have discussed different methods of unhiding columns in Excel like Using a Mouse, using VBA code, Using Key Board Shortcut, etc. You can also go through our other suggested articles –

  1. COLUMN Function in Excel
  2. Excel Hide Formula
  3. Column Header in Excel
  4. How to Unhide All Sheets in Excel?

Why Are The Columns/Rows Missing?

If you landed on this article, you’ve probably been pulling your hair out trying to figure out why you can’t unhide your Excel spreadsheet rows or columns. They just appear to be missing!

This is not a glitch or bug within your Excel file, it’s actually an intended spreadsheet feature (when used correctly). The feature that is causing this is Excel’s Freeze Panes button.

Why Is This Happening?

When you apply Freeze Panes to your spreadsheet, it essentially locks the view based on where the window is scrolled to. This means that if there are rows/columns that are not visible to either the left or top of your spreadsheet, these cells will remain unviewable once Freeze Panes has been activated. This essentially prevents you from accessing (unhiding) them.

An alternate scenario where this will occur is when Row 1 is part of an outline group and is collapsed prior to the Freeze Pane being applied. Oddly enough, this does not occur is Column A is part of a collapsed group as you can freely expand/collapse the group after the Freeze Pane has been applied.

Steps To Access/Fix The Locked Rows Or Columns

  1. Go to the View tab in your Excel Ribbon

  2. Click the Freeze Panes menu button within the Windows button group

  3. Select the Unfreeze Panes button

Now you should be able to access those “missing” rows or columns.

Why Is Hiding With Freeze Panes Useful?

Locking (hiding) rows or columns with the freeze panes button can be a passive-aggressive way to keep others from vital formulas you don’t want messed with. If you don’t want to deal with setting and remembering passwords, this can be a great alternative to preventing your users from easily accessing sections of your spreadsheet.

Hidings Rows or Columns With Freeze Panes

If you would like to hide or lock yourself from being able to access rows in the top portion or columns on the left side of your spreadsheet, you simply need to do the following:

  1. Scroll horizontally and vertically to position any rows/columns you wish to hide so they do not appear on your screen

  2. Select the cell you wish to designate for your Freeze Panes application

  3. Navigate to the View Tab and enable your Freeze Panes

After you have completed these steps, you will be unable to access the rows or columns you locked from view until your click the Unfreeze Panes button.

Hiding Grouped Rows With Freeze Panes

If you would like to hide or lock yourself from being able to access an outline grouping of rows in the top portion of your spreadsheet, you simply need to do the following:

  1. Apply your outline grouping to the rows you wish to collapse

    • IMPORTANT! In order for this to work, Row 1 must be part of your grouping. If it is not, you will still be able to expand the outline group when the Freeze Panes are applied.

  2. Select the cell you wish to designate for your Freeze Panes application

  3. Navigate to the View Tab and enable your Freeze Panes

After you have completed these steps, you will be unable to access the collapsed rows until your click the Unfreeze Panes button.

I Hope This Helped!

Hopefully, I was able to explain how you can unlock or lock rows/columns in your spreadsheet using the Freeze Panes feature. If you have any questions about this technique or suggestions on how to improve it, please let me know in the comments section below.

About The Author

Hey there! I’m Chris and I run TheSpreadsheetGuru website in my spare time. By day, I’m actually a finance professional who relies on Microsoft Excel quite heavily in the corporate world. I love taking the things I learn in the “real world” and sharing them with everyone here on this site so that you too can become a spreadsheet guru at your company.

Through my years in the corporate world, I’ve been able to pick up on opportunities to make working with Excel better and have built a variety of Excel add-ins, from inserting tickmark symbols to automating copy/pasting from Excel to PowerPoint. If you’d like to keep up to date with the latest Excel news and directly get emailed the most meaningful Excel tips I’ve learned over the years, you can sign up for my free newsletters. I hope I was able to provide you with some value today and I hope to see you back here soon!

— Chris

Warning for Excel Hidden Rows

You can hide rows and columns in Excel, and it’s usually easy to unhide those rows or columns later. But, if you run into problems, these quick tips might help you show those rows and columns again.

Unhiding Rows and Columns

If you notice that rows are hidden in an Excel workbook, you can usually unhide them by following these steps:

  • Select the rows on either side of the hidden ones
  • Next, right-click on one of the selected rows
  • In the pop-up menu, click the Unhide command

choose Unhide command

Trouble Unhiding Top Rows

Occasionally, you can run into problems when you need to unhide rows or column on an Excel worksheet.

For example, if Row 1 is hidden, or the top few rows are hidden, how can you unhide them?

Here are the steps to show the hidden top rows on a worksheet:

  • At the left side of the Excel sheet, press on the first visible row button
    • In the animated screen shot below, Row 6 is the first visible row
  • Next, drag up, onto the Select All button.
    • Tips: As you drag up, a small popup appears, to show the number of rows you’ve selected.
  • Then, right-click the first visible row button
  • In the pop-up menu, click Unhide

This animated gif shows the steps for selecting the hidden rows at the top of a worksheet, and unhiding them

Another Hidden Top Rows Fix

If you weren’t able to show the hidden top rows, the problem might be caused by  some of the worksheet has been locked in place, with the Freeze Panes command.

To see if freezing is the problem of hidden rows or columns, follow these steps:

  • Select any cell on the the worksheet
  • On the Excel Ribbon, click the View tab
  • If there is an Unfreeze Pane command in the drop down list, click that, to unfreeze the locked sections

The “hidden” rows or columns might reappear after that, when you scroll to the top or left of the worksheet.

Warning for Hidden Rows

Perhaps the biggest problem with hidden rows or columns in an Excel workbook is that you might not even know that things are hidden! I’m sure you’ve read the horror stories in the news about that kind of problem.

To help you spot hidden rows or columns, I’ve made a sample workbook that uses formulas and conditional formatting to alert you when things are hidden.

There are details on how it works in this blog post: Excel Hidden Data Warning.

In the screen shot shown below,

  • Rows 12 and 13 are hidden
    • Formula in cell B2 shows that 2 rows are hidden
  • Columns E and F are hidden
    • Conditional formatting in cell D1 shows that columns are hidden, to the right of the coloured cell

Get the Hidden Data Warning File

To get the hidden rows and columns warning workbook, go to the Conditional Formatting Examples page on my Contextures site.

In the “Get the Sample Files” section, look for File #3: Hidden Data Warning. The zipped Excel file is in xlsx, and does not contain any macros.

hiddencolumns01

Video: Trouble Unhiding Top Excel Rows

This short video shows you a quick way to see those hidden rows at the top of your Excel worksheet.

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Warning for Hidden Rows and Columns in Excel

Warning for Excel Hidden Rows

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