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: Clearing the Undo Stack in a Macro.

Clearing the Undo Stack in a Macro

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated December 25, 2024)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021

In Word, you can use the UndoClear method with the ActiveDocument object in order to clear the Undo stack. If you are programming macros in Excel's flavor of VBA, you may wonder if there is a similar method for use in Excel.

Excel VBA doesn't provide a method like UndoClear. The reason is because the undo stack is automatically cleared by Excel whenever your macro makes a change (any change) to the workbook. If your macro doesn't make any changes, and you still want it to clear the undo stack, then all you need to do is make an innocuous change to the worksheet. For instance, the following macro copies the contents of cell A1 back into A1 and, in the process, clears the undo stack:

Sub ClearUndo()
    Range("A1").Copy Range("A1")
End Sub

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 (9733) 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: Clearing the Undo Stack in a Macro.

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

Inserting Datasheet Rows or Columns

Microsoft Graph provides a handy way to add simple charts to your document without the need for Excel. Those charts are ...

Discover More

Saving a Workbook in a Macro

Does your macro need to make sure that the workbook being processed is saved to disk? You can add the saving capability ...

Discover More

Merging and Printing a Series of Documents

Do you need to merge and print a number of documents in a particular order? Perhaps the best approach is to record a ...

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 2013 For Dummies today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Macro Runs Slowly, but Steps Quickly

When you have a macro that processes a huge amount of data, it can seem like it takes forever to finish up. These ...

Discover More

Calculating an ISBN Check Digit

ISBNs are used to uniquely identify books. You may need to know if an ISBN is valid or not, which involves calculating ...

Discover More

Skipping Hidden Rows in a Macro

As your macro processes information in a worksheet, you may want to make sure that it skips over rows that are hidden. ...

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 0 + 7?

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.