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: Saving Changes when Closing.

Saving Changes when Closing

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated September 19, 2025)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021

If you modify an Excel workbook, and then close the file, you are asked if you want to save your changes. This is a good feature that helps ensure you don't mistakenly throw away some of your work.

When running a macro, however, you may not want to be bothered with a dialog box asking if you want to save your changes. If the macro modifies a workbook in some way, and you use the Close method, you are asked if you want to save your changes, just as you are if you manually close a workbook without first saving.

The way to get around this is to use one of the parameters available with the Close method. Consider the following:

    ActiveWorkbook.Close SaveChanges:=False
    ActiveWorkbook.Close SaveChanges:=True

Both lines of code close the active worbook. The difference between the lines is in the setting of the SaveChanges parameter. In the case of the first line, any changes will be discarded, while the second line results in the workbook being saved when it is closed.

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 (10674) 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: Saving Changes when Closing.

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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