Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. 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: Colors and Fonts for Worksheet Tabs.

Colors and Fonts for Worksheet Tabs

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 9, 2024)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021

Excel is quite configurable in how information appears on your screen. At some time, you may want to change the appearance of the worksheet tabs at the bottom of your workbook. Unfortunately, Excel allows very little customization of the way worksheet tabs are presented.

If you want to change the font used in a worksheet tab, you need to change the fonts used by Windows (not Excel) to displays information. You can use the Windows Control Panel to modify the appearance of information within your system. Understand, however, that such changes affect all programs running on your system, not just Excel.

If you want to change the color used to display a worksheet tab, you can follow these steps:

  1. Right-click on the worksheet tab you want to change. Excel displays a Context menu.
  2. Choose Tab Color from the Context menu. Excel displays a palette of available colors.
  3. Select a color to use for the tab.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (9702) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Colors and Fonts for Worksheet Tabs.

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

Printing a File List

It is often helpful to have a list of all the documents in a given directory or folder. Word doesn't have a built-in way ...

Discover More

Adding AutoShapes

The graphics features of Excel allow you to add a number of predefined AutoShapes to a workbook. If you want to add ...

Discover More

Flashing Cells

Want to draw attention to some information in a particular cell? Make the cell flash, on and off. Here's how you can ...

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)

Finding a Worksheet with a Specific Value in a Specific Cell

If you have a lot of worksheets in workbook, finding the exact one you want can be a bit tricky. This tip looks at ...

Discover More

Using Very Long Worksheet Tab Names

Excel places a limit on how many characters you can use in a worksheet name. This tip discusses that limit and provides ...

Discover More

Identifying the Last Cell Changed in a Worksheet

When someone changes a cell in a worksheet, Excel normally goes along its merry way of keeping everything up to date. It ...

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 5 - 3?

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 © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.