Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 9, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021
When Hans right-clicks a cell that contains a hyperlink (such as an e-mail address) and clicks Remove Hyperlink, Excel freezes and stops working. He's not added any new add-ins that might have caused this, so he is casting about for ideas that can help prevent this behavior.
The first thing to do is to try to figure out if the problem is being caused by Excel itself or by the workbook in which Hans is working. The easiest way to do this is two-fold: Open a different workbook and see if the problem is evident in it. Then, take the original workbook to a different system and see if the problem moves with the workbook.
If the problem seems to be only with the one workbook (both on your system and on the other system), then you know that there is something wrong with that workbook. In that case, check to see if the workbook contains any macros that may be causing the issue. If a macro isn't in play, then it is possible that the workbook is corrupted in some way. In that case, you'll want to refer to this resource prepared by Microsoft:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/office/repairing-a-corrupted-workbook-7abfc44d-e9bf-4896-8899-bd10ef4d61ab
If the problem is with your system alone (the workbook works just fine on the other system and you have problems with hyperlinks in other workbooks), then you should consider repairing your installation of Excel. Microsoft provides the following info that will be helpful in this regard:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/repair-an-office-application-7821d4b6-7c1d-4205-aa0e-a6b40c5bb88b
If you don't want to repair Excel for some reason, you may want to consider simply turning off Excel's automatically converting URLs to hyperlinks. You can do that by following the steps in this tip:
https://excelribbon.tips.net/T8666
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (11311) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021.
Solve Real Business Problems Master business modeling and analysis techniques with Excel and transform data into bottom-line results. This hands-on, scenario-focused guide shows you how to use the latest Excel tools to integrate data from multiple tables. Check out Microsoft Excel Data Analysis and Business Modeling today!
Excel provides a good number of worksheet functions that can help you pick apart text strings in various ways. In this ...
Discover MoreIn Excel, a hyperlink consists of two parts: the text displayed for the link and the target of the link. You can use a ...
Discover MoreGot a single worksheet that you want to e-mail to someone, but don't want them to see the rest of the worksheets in the ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
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.
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments