Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated December 2, 2022)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Excel in Microsoft 365
Francois wonders if it is possible to change the color of the triangle that appears in the upper-right corner of a cell when there is a comment associated with the cell. The triangle is red, by default, but Francois would like it to be a different color that is easier for him to see.
There are some things that, it seems, are simply hard-coded into Excel and cannot be changed. The color of the comment indicator is one of those items. Even playing with the various color settings in Windows had no effect on the indicators.
This has been an issue that has been asked about and discussed for years in the Excel community. One potential workaround is presented by MVP Debra Dagliesh at this page:
http://www.contextures.com/xlcomments03.html#Indicator
The solution presented there was actually designed for printing. (Excel doesn't print comment indicators when you print a worksheet, but you may want indicators printed.) The macro that Debra presents can be easily modified so that the graphic used is any color desired.
Of course, the drawback to such an approach is that it adds a graphic to your worksheet for each comment you have. If you have lots of comments in the worksheet, you'll end up having lots of graphics. In addition, the graphics may not "stay put" as you edit the worksheet, adding and deleting cells. If you add or delete comments, then you'll also need to delete graphics (Debra provides a macro to do this) and rerun the macro to add graphics back.
Another potential option is to use a macro to color the background of any cell that contains a comment. The following macro looks at whatever cells you have selected and then changes the color of any cell containing a comment.
Sub ColorComments() Dim commentCell As Range On Error GoTo ErrorHandler 'Deal with empty selection Selection.SpecialCells(xlCellTypeComments).Select On Error GoTo 0 For Each commentCell In Selection.Cells commentCell.Interior.ColorIndex = 36 Next Range("A1").Select Exit Sub ErrorHandler: ' Error Handler is deliberately empty End Sub
The drawback to this macro is that it is not easy to "unmark" any cells if comments are removed. You'll also need to rerun the macro as you add new comments to your worksheet.
Note:
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (3498) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Excel in Microsoft 365.
Excel Smarts for Beginners! Featuring the friendly and trusted For Dummies style, this popular guide shows beginners how to get up and running with Excel while also helping more experienced users get comfortable with the newest features. Check out Excel 2013 For Dummies today!
Need to find that misplaced comment in your worksheet? It's easy to do using the Find and Replace capabilities of Excel.
Discover MoreWant to automatically move the contents of a cell into a comment for that cell? It's easy enough to do by using the macro ...
Discover MoreWhen you print your worksheet, you may want Excel to include your comments or notes as they appear on the screen. Here's ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
2019-02-13 13:12:49
Alan Striegel
The terminology has very recently changed. Excel now uses the term 'note' for what has always been called a 'comment' and it now uses 'comment' for a different purpose.
Got a version of Excel that uses the ribbon interface (Excel 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the menu interface.
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2024 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments