How to Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet

You can easily add a password to an Excel spreadsheet from within the document's settings! If you don't have the latest edition of Excel, don't worry–you can password-protect documents in most renditions of Excel.

If you'd also like to know how to unprotect the sheet, check out the article How to Open a Password Protected Excel File.

Method 1
Method 1 of 2:

Excel 2010/2013/2016

  1. Image titled Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet Step 1
    1
    Open your Excel document.
  2. Image titled Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet Step 2
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    Click File. This is in the top left corner of the screen.
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  3. Image titled Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet Step 3
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    Click Protect Workbook.[1]
  4. Image titled Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet Step 4
    4
    Click "Encrypt with Password".
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    Type in a password. Take care not to forget this password; if you lose it, you won't be able to open your file.
  6. Image titled Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet Step 6
    6
    Click OK.
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    Re-enter your password.
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    8
    Click OK.
  9. Image titled Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet Step 9
    9
    Close your document. If prompted, click Save Changes first.
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    Re-open your document. You should see a field that reads "(YourFile).xlsx is protected".
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    Type in your password.
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    Click OK. If you typed in your password correctly, you should now have access to your document!
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Method 2
Method 2 of 2:

Excel 2007

  1. Image titled Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet Step 13
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    Open your Excel document.
  2. Image titled Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet Step 14
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    Click the "Review" tab.[2]
  3. Image titled Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet Step 15
    3
    Click Protect Workbook. This is in the "Changes" section.
  4. Image titled Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet Step 16
    4
    Check the "Structure" box. If you have also set up specific windows within the file, check the pertinent box as well.
  5. Image titled Password Protect an Excel Spreadsheet Step 17
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    Type in your password. You may need to do this twice.
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    6
    Click OK. Your excel file is now password-protected! When you open it, you'll be asked to input your password.
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Community Q&A

  • Question
    I have made a sheet in Excel which contains 2000 names and addresses, so now I want to make this sequenced. First a, then after that b, c, etc. How do I do this?
    Sylvia Saltaformajo
    Sylvia Saltaformajo
    Community Answer
    Right-click on the column you want to sort your sheet by. A menu will open. Hover over the "Sort" option in it. You will see another menu, click "Sort A to Z" in it.
  • Question
    What do I do if I forgot the password?
    Sylvia Saltaformajo
    Sylvia Saltaformajo
    Community Answer
    Unfortunately you can't recover forgotten passwords for MS Excel spreadsheets. You'll have to recreate a document or recover password using special software. You can find it online, there are many options: Password-Find, Password Lastic, Rixler password recovery, etc.
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Warnings

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References

  1. ↑ https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Password-protect-documents-workbooks-and-presentations-ef163677-3195-40ba-885a-d50fa2bb6b68?ui=en-US&rs=en-US&ad=US&fromAR=1
  2. ↑ http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/microsoft-office/use-a-password-to-secure-access-to-an-excel-workbook/

About This Article

Jack Lloyd
Written by:
Jack Lloyd
wikiHow Technology Writer
This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Jack Lloyd. Jack Lloyd is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. He has over two years of experience writing and editing technology-related articles. He is technology enthusiast and an English teacher. This article has been viewed 191,683 times.
How helpful is this?
Co-authors: 17
Updated: August 17, 2022
Views: 191,683
Categories: Microsoft Excel
Article SummaryX

1. Open the file.
2. Click File.
3. Click Protect Workbook.
4. Click Encrypt with Password.
5. Enter a password.
6. Click OK.
7. Close the document.
8. Reopen and enter the password.

Did this summary help you?
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