Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Excel in Microsoft 365, 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: Deleting All Names but a Few.

Deleting All Names but a Few

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated December 17, 2022)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Excel in Microsoft 365, and 2021


2

Do you routinely work with worksheets that contain dozens (or hundreds) of named cells, and most of those names are unnecessary? Cleaning up the names can be a huge task, but getting rid of the ones you don't need can make your workbook smaller and more efficient. The problem is, how do you get rid of a lot of unnecessary names all at once? You can certainly delete them one at a time, but such a process quickly gets tiresome. You could also use the Name Manager to delete them (press Ctrl+F3), but that can be very time consuming as well.

One possible solution is to simply create a new workbook and copy the cells from the old workbook to the new one. Highlight the cells in the old workbook, use Ctrl+C to copy them, then paste them into worksheets in the new workbook. This will copy almost everything from the old workbook—formulas, formatting, etc. It does not copy over print settings or range names. The only task then remaining is to redefine the few names you want in the new workbook.

If you prefer to work with the old workbook (the one with all the names), it is best to create a macro that will do the name deletion for you. You need a macro that will allow you to delete all the names except those you want to keep. The following is a simple approach that accomplishes this task:

Sub DeleteSomeNames()
    Dim vKeep
    Dim nm As Name
    Dim x As Integer
    Dim AWF As WorksheetFunction

    'Add Names to keep here
    vKeep = Array("Name1", "Name2")

    Set AWF = Application.WorksheetFunction
    For Each nm In ActiveWorkbook.Names
        x = 0
        On Error Resume Next
        x = AWF.Match(nm.Name, vKeep, 0)
        On Error GoTo 0
        If x = 0 Then
            nm.Delete
        End If
    Next
    Set AWF = Nothing
End Sub

Before using the macro, modify the line that creates the vKeep array. Simply enter the names you want to keep within the array, each name surrounded by quotes and separated by commas. (In the example shown here, the names "Name1" and "Name2" will be kept.) The macro loops through all the names in the workbook and uses the Match function to see if the name is one in the array. If it is not, then it is deleted.

If you prefer to use a third-party solution to managing the names in your workbook, a great choice is the Name Manager add-in, written by Jan Karel Pieterse. You can find more information on the add-in here:

https://jkp-ads.com/excel-name-manager.asp

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 (11787) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Excel in Microsoft 365, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Deleting All Names but a Few.

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

Rounding in Results

Rounding is a fact of life when it comes to using formulas in a worksheet. Sometimes that rounding can be a bit ...

Discover More

Entering Data as Thousands

There are many different ways you may need to enter data in a worksheet. For instance, you might want to enter data in ...

Discover More

Changing the Cycling Sequence for the F4 Cell Reference Shortcut

When editing a formula, the F4 shortcut key can be helpful. It may not, however, be helpful in all instances. This tip ...

Discover More

Professional Development Guidance! Four world-class developers offer start-to-finish guidance for building powerful, robust, and secure applications with Excel. The authors show how to consistently make the right design decisions and make the most of Excel's powerful features. Check out Professional Excel Development today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Changes in Font Size when Copying

Have you ever copied information from one worksheet to another, only to have the information you paste not look the way ...

Discover More

Automatically Adding 20% to an Entry

When you are developing a worksheet for others to use, you may want to have entries in a particular cell (or cells) be ...

Discover More

Shortcut for Selecting a Data Range

Want to select all the data in a contiguous section of a worksheet? The shortcut discussed in this tip makes it very easy.

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.

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 2 + 2?

2023-03-04 12:10:33

J. Woolley

For related discussion, see https://excelribbon.tips.net/T010338_Getting_Rid_of_Unused_Range_Names.html


2022-12-17 09:38:52

J. Woolley

My Excel Toolbox includes the following dynamic array function to list defined names (named ranges) with workbook, worksheet, or any scope, including names that are normally hidden:
=ListNames([Scope],[SkipHidden],[SkipHeader])
The list includes the following columns: Scope, Name, Visible, Refers To, Value, Comment.
See https://sites.google.com/view/MyExcelToolbox/
In older versions of Excel you can use it with the SpillArray function like this:
=SpillArray(ListNames(...))
See UseSpillArray.pdf at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HTw_rYNZR2I6dE9C__qFhbd8YtC7rv17/view


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.