Opening a Workbook and Suppressing Automatic Macros

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 4, 2026)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Excel in Microsoft 365

When you open a workbook, Excel normally runs any automatic macros that are saved with the workbook. Paul notes that in previous versions of Excel he could hold down the Shift key as the workbook was opened and Excel would not run the automatic macros. In the latest version of Excel this doesn't seem to work for Paul, so he wonders if Microsoft has changed this convention.

The short answer is no, Microsoft has not changed this convention. When you open a workbook and hold down the Shift key as it is opening, Excel should ignore any automatic macros set up for the workbook. If that behavior is not what you are experiencing on your system, it could be that you aren't actually holding down the Shift key at the start of the loading process or you aren't holding it down long enough. Make sure you hold the Shift key as you click on the Open button (in the Open dialog box) or as you click the file in the MRU.

For a great, in-depth exposition of how all this works, visit this page on the site maintained by Excel MVP Jan Karel Pieterse:

https://jkp-ads.com/articles/preventopenevent.aspx

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the ExcelTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (8769) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Excel in Microsoft 365.

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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Pasting Leading Zeroes

Paste information into a worksheet, and you may be surprised to see leading zeroes disappear before your eyes. Here's how ...

Discover More

Using COUNTIF with Colors

Excel allows you to easily format cells with different fonts, borders, and colors. If you want to count the number of ...

Discover More

Preventing Automatic Date Formatting Changes

Excel often changes the formatting of a cell based on how it parses what you are entering into that cell. This is ...

Discover More

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 2019 For Dummies today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Separating Evens and Odds

If you have a series of values in a column, you might have a need to separate the values into even values and odd values. ...

Discover More

Adjusting a Path Based on System and User

It is not uncommon to set variables in a macro based on other values, such as time or date. You could also set variables ...

Discover More

Deriving an Absolute Value in a Macro

Need to figure out an absolute value within your macro code? It's easy to do using the Abs function, described in this tip.

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 4 - 1?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

This Site

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.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2026 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.