Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365. If you are using an earlier version (Excel 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Excel, click here: Printing a List of Named Ranges.

Printing a List of Named Ranges

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated March 4, 2023)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365


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Anyone who has created a large workbook knows that it is very easy to create a large list of named ranges. Managing those ranges, particularly if you inherit the workbook from someone else, is a much harder task. Part of the problem is that you may lose track of all your ranges and what they refer to.

Having a list of the names in your workbook could be helpful. To get a list, follow these steps:

  1. Select the cell where you want the list to start. Since a name list can occupy a good deal of space, you may want to select a cell in a blank worksheet.
  2. Display the Formulas tab of the ribbon.
  3. In the Defined Names group, click the Use In Formula tool. (This tool is not available if there are no named ranges in your workbook.) Excel displays a list of options.
  4. Choose Paste Names from the submenu. Excel displays the Paste Name dialog box.
  5. Click on Paste List. The two-column list of names and their ranges is inserted.

There's also a shortcut you can use to accomplish these steps: Simply press F3, and Excel displays the Paste Name dialog box. (If you press F3 and nothing happens, it means that the workbook has no named ranges defined within it.) In other words, pressing F3 accomplishes steps 1-4. You can then perform step 5 to get your list of named ranges.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (7731) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Printing a List of Named Ranges.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

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What is nine more than 4?

2023-03-06 18:33:01

R McNeil

A couple notes from testing this (in 2016 version):
If you open a blank worksheet to paste into, then this tip will give you a list of Global named ranges.
If you do it within a sheet with data, then it will give you a list of named ranges specific to that sheet.

This would be really cool if it would produce a list of all named ranges in the workbook, regardless of scope.


2023-03-04 10:14:10

J. Woolley

My Excel Toolbox includes the following dynamic array function to list defined names (named ranges) with workbook, worksheet, or any scope, including names that are normally hidden:
=ListNames([Scope],[SkipHidden],[SkipHeader])
The list includes the following columns: Scope, Name, Visible, Refers To, Value, Comment. When using pre-2021 versions of Excel without support for dynamic arrays, consider UseSpillArray.pdf.
My Excel Toolbox's NamesInFormulas macro lists hyperlinks to formula cells referencing each visible defined name (named range) in the active workbook. (Hidden names are ignored.) The cell's formula will be included in a comment attached to its hyperlink. The following details are also provided for each name: Scope, Name, Refers To, Value, and Comment. Results are recorded in the active workbook's 'NamesIn...' worksheet.
See https://sites.google.com/view/MyExcelToolbox


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