Forum Discussion
Excel will not let me click into cells or incorrect cell is selected randomly
Hi,
This is an ongoing issue that I've been having for years across platforms, computers, versions of excel and workbooks.
Basicially, one of two things happen:
1-I click on a cell but nothing happens, the cell is not selected
2-I click on a cell but the wrong cell is selected (Example: Click on cell B2 but excel will select C2)
This will happen as frequently as a few times a day (across multiple workbooks) to every month (again, across multiple workbooks)
In ALL cases cells are NOT protected
Saving the workbook, closing then restarting excel fixes the problem.
As I mentioned before, this has been ongoing for years now across multiple computers, workbooks, operating systems. All systems and versions of excel were fully up to date at the time of the error. Because this is happening over several different workbooks, I do not belive it is a workbook issue (especially when it doesn't happen 100% of the time to ANY workbook)
Systems used:
Macbook Pro (circa 2015), OS up to date - No longer have this computer
Windows 8 (again, old computer)
Windows 10 (old computer
Windows 11 (2 different computers, currently owned)
I have always kept excel and the OS fully up to date and I'm currently using the most recent version of Windows and Excel.
In all cases, I have used built in trackpad and a 3 different wireless mice (with full batteries). Still randomly occurs.
It's really just an annoyance and like I mentioned before, saving the workbook and restarting excel solves the issue... until next time (which could be later that day or a few weeks...It's very random.)
- MICROSOFT: You are knowingly charging customers for a product for which a key item of functionality does not work correctly, with risk of incorrect data in Excel. This can have numerous implications, sometimes serious, depending on the industry and use (e.g. medical, social care etc.) For all users, this impacts productivity, time, and therefore personal time also.
You have a responsibility to engage with your customers, update them on progress, and fix the issue by priority. The current service level is deeply unethical.- Hi All,
I have faced this issue for the first time today. What helped to me is to turn off VESA adaptive Sync in Intel Graphics Command Center (Display\Global Settings). I am still not sure if it will really resolve this issue but it didn't happen again for last two hours for me.
I hope this will help you all.- Thanks for the info, I don't have that same setup, but maybe there is some other display setting that would help, given the issue only manifests when using external monitors docked to my laptop.
Let me share my observation of this problem, for a while now.
For me, this problem is repeated for some specific files, while does not happen for other files. Also, I have seen a lot of excel glitches to percolate to files where the data is copy pasted to new files, etc. Hence we have quarantined these specific files, so to say, to stop further contamination, in absence of a better solution.
Try to start a new file, right from template, with no other excel file open, on a fresh start of windows and excel, and see if you still face this issue. If not, then you may be sailing in the same boat.
Maybe this will help some. For others, please do try to post, in reply, the behavior that you observed, to get a larger grasp of the issue.- Thanks for this. For sure it affects some files and not others, but I haven't been able to find a correlation. I wonder if copying the file to create a new one can possibly make any difference?
Note to Microsoft: here we are again, many months later. users discussing their own methods to try to work around this, while in the meantime you've totally abandoned us and continue to charge us for a faulty product. There must be laws against knowingly selling a faulty product and refusing to engage with customers who purchased it? Absolutely disgraceful.- Hi,
I posted some time ago about this problem and have received many replies with lots of workarounds. This seems to be part of the problem as we, the end user, are attempting to create workarounds for a Microsoft product.
I have been using Excel since about 1993, I still have the 16 31/2 inch floppies for Office Pro. This is not our problem! This is Microsoft's problem and they appear to be nothing about it.
Imagine buying a new Tesla and it works perfectly but on some days it doesn't want to turn left, only right. Would you plan your trip so that the route was only straight and with only right turns, but if you had to turn right you would get out of your Tesla and with the aid of bystanders physically turn the car around the left turns?
Come on Microsoft, do your job and fix it!
- Hi, this is annoying me too. A quick way to get "back to normal" is to press:
(1) Scroll Lock (2) Up Arrow (3) Scroll Lock (4) Down Arrow
This can be done really quickly but this doesn't permanently fix the issue obviously.
Took me ages to work this out 🙂[Scroll Lock, Up arrow, Scroll Lock, Down Arrow]
This helped fix my issue of not being able to edit Series Names and values from charts.It's like entering a nintendo code!
- Thanks for the information. I use the laptop's keyboard with a marble mouse, with two external monitors. I still find the easiest way to temporarily undo this disgraceful bug is to quickly scroll the touchpad up and down a few times.
MICROSOFT: We've been asked to submit the issue to the Feedback Hub, which it has been, a long, long time ago. What are you doing about this disgusting service level?
- Thanks for the suggestion. I have my own 'fix', not sure if it works for everyone, but when the issue happens I simply scroll up/down using touchpad swipe. Doing it quite widely and rapidly a few times seems to 'shake' it back to normal, as utterly ridiculous as this is.
- This works for me to fix the issue temporarily.
If the cell selection issue happens, use the two-finger swipe on the trackpad - either from left to right, or from top to bottom, and let go.
This is not a permanent fix but it will take care of the issue without having to close and reopen the file.
Christoff456 Great thanks, I'll give that ago as it's been doing it a lot to me today! it's so random, i can go for days an it's fine.
- Further testing this side (which Microsoft should be doing):
- When issue manifests on extended monitor, the bug remains in place if the Excel is dragged to a 2nd monitor or the laptop's own monitor.
- After dragging to the laptop's own monitor and disconnecting the USB-C dock, so no monitors are connected, the issue disappears. Issue clearly correlated with use of extended monitor(s).
This is the most ridiculous, disgraceful example of apathetic customer support I've witnessed in my 30 years of using MS products.
The issue should be fixed immediately, and I believe users have a case to take Microsoft to court to reclaim costs for lost productivity, and for the general stress caused and effect on users' personal time.Hi,
we faced the same annoying issue and after doing some tests I found that the issue seems to be related to scrolling the mouse wheel.
When you scroll the file contents and click to select a specified cell, the highlighted cell is different from the edited cell. For what I observed the offset between the highlighted cell and edited cell is always +/- the value you set in the number of lines to scroll with mouse whell (Settings - Devices -> Mouse -> Choose how many lines to scroll each time).
I tried with some differente mouse but the situation don't change.
I hope this information can help you to catch the bug.
Please Microsoft fix this issue as soon as possibile beceause is very annoying. Thanks
I have the same problem. Happens across all my excel files. It is not a problem when I first open the file but as I work on it for a bit the problem arises.
Only solution I have found is to close and re open the file but then the same problem can happen a few minutes later.
Very annoying and look forward to a solution.
From reading comments of users here I conclude (1) I have the same problem and have tried most of the advice given so far without having eliminted the problem (2) I see this going on for over a year to people who seem to have more relevant knowledge and experience than I do (3) I must conclude it is unlikely I will find a solution short term
I need to work for a living and don't have time for this, so my plea for help from you all is:
please advise on best alternative to Microsoft Office, hopefully something allowing me to produce new documents that other Microsoft OFFICE users can open and work with, and with which I can open all my existing MS documents, not only EXCEL but WORD, POWERPOINT etc
Thank you
- Just started looking at the thread in 2022 and thought I was too late to contribute. Not the case it seems.
I think the issue for me is more frequent when I'm using my Extended monitor as well.
Just wanted to add my workaround.
I accept wherever it wrongly sends me when I click, then I move to the cell I actually want with my arrow keys.
A quirk I found is that selection of cells or event specifically selected cell content will "sometimes" not work correctly. It seems, at least in my experience, due to the fact that I utilize multiple screens. If I work in the excel file on the "primary" monitor, I have no issues, but if I am working on excel in an "extended" monitor, then the issue appears. And FYI, I use a Logi MX Mechanical keyboard and logi M720 mouse all running on a laptop (closed lid) with a touchpad. I do disable the touchpad when an external mouse is attached. Hope this helps someone.
So I'm back, having not had this issue for ages, this week I have had nothing but this cell issue every day on different sheets. I have to used the directional pad to get to the cell I want to select as by using the mouse, it jumps to the cell next to. Having said that, I do use two monitors and I wonder if you are on to something there??
- Thanks for this. As it happens, I started an Excel (ironically) log today, to track occurrences and try to find a cause. And tonight, I started a test using the laptop on its own, which I will continue tomorrow. I need the big screen / dual screens for my work, but at least if we prove this is a factor, then we can advise these MS clowns about it.
I use 5 laptops, two company and three personal. The company laptops (large international) use 365 and I use the subscription version. I use various mice combinations including usb and wired and also the pad. I am using three DELLs - different models and two Microsoft Surface Pros different models.
This problem appears in all versions of excel I'm using. All versions are continually updated.
It does not happen all the time but randomly and can only be corrected by either closing and restarting excel, selecting another tab, or selecting another program and returning.
Considering the various suggestions does not seem to make any difference, it just keep happening and appears to becoming more frequent.
It is very frustrating and time consuming.
- Again, extraordinary. Microsoft should be taken to a court of law and made to pay damages for all the loss of productivity, impact on personal time, and stress, caused to customers.
One way I sometimes manage to correct the issue is to quickly scroll the screen up/down. It's maybe not convenient if using a mouse, but because I use the laptop touchpad I can quickly do that with a two-finger up/down swipe. It saves closing/re-opening so it's quicker for me.
Hi,
I managed to capture a video snip of this today.
Hopefully it's obvious where I was clicking, what cell is highlighted vs what is edited.
At the same time I was trying to type D405 into the cell, backspace was playing up also (related?)
- Thanks for this, a good demo of the issue. MS are trying to claim it's an obscure problem, difficult to replicate, but that's not an acceptable response given the number of users affected. It's their job to replicate and fix the issue, they're the ones selling the app and they designed and maintain it. I remain utterly astonished this bug has been allowed to fester unfixed for this long. It's causing me disruption and lost productivity every single day, plus there is continual risk of not catching an error caused by it.
- Same here. Seriously why can't any Microsoft product run without any issues. Bizarrely Excel runs smoother on a mac than on pc. Seriously man!
Microsoft employees are too lazy or incompetent to fix this issueMoonDee I've opened a new case myself, link below. Again, it is absolutely staggering that a bug of this magnitude, rendering one of their key apps not for for purpose, is left to fester for this long. I don't remember a more disgraceful example.
Same here. Seriously why can't any Microsoft product run without any issues. Bizarrely Excel runs smoother on a mac than on pc. Seriously man!
