How To Remove Password Protection in Excel

Updated February 3, 2023

Excel is a popular software program that many companies use to create spreadsheets and compile data. This program gives users the option to protect their work by adding a password to keep it more secure. If you're creating spreadsheets in Excel, you might benefit from learning about how to remove a password from a file.

In this article, we explain why you may choose to have a password in Excel and provide steps to help you add, remove or change your password on a PC or Mac device.

Why have a password for Excel?

Creating a password for your Excel spreadsheets can prevent unauthorized individuals from accessing your work. If you're working on sensitive information, such as a financial report for your business, this can help you ensure it stays protected. Another reason you may choose to set a password for an Excel spreadsheet is if you want to share it with other individuals as a read-only document.

To do this, you can require users to insert a password if they wish to edit the spreadsheet. This allows you to share information with your colleagues while ensuring they can't make any changes to the data unless they know the password.

How to add an Excel password

If you want to add an extra layer of security to your Excel spreadsheets, you may choose to add a password. Here are some instructions you can use to create an Excel password on a PC or a Mac device:

1. Instructions for PC

You can follow these instructions to add an Excel password if you're using a PC device:

Open the spreadsheet you want to create a password for in Excel.
In the upper left corner of your screen, click on the "File" tab on your toolbar.
Select the "Info" button from the drop-down menu.
On the info page, select the box labeled "Protect Workbook."
Click on the "Encrypt with Password" button in the drop-down menu.
Type your password in the text box and click the "OK" button.
Re-enter the same password and click "OK" again to set your password.

2. Instructions for Mac

You can follow these instructions to add an Excel password if you're using a Mac device:

Open the spreadsheet you want to create a password for in Excel.
In the upper left corner of your screen, select the "File" tab by clicking on it in your toolbar.
Click on the "Passwords" button on the drop-down menu.
In the pop-up window that appears, type the password you plan to use to open the file in the future.
In the same pop-up window, type the password you plan to use to edit the file. You may choose to use the same password to open and edit the file to make it easier to remember. Once you've entered both passwords, click the "OK" button.
Re-enter both passwords in the text box provided to make sure they match. Then, click "OK" to set your passwords.

Make sure the password you choose to protect your Excel spreadsheet is something you can remember easily since there isn't a simple recovery option if you lose it. You can also write your password down and keep it in a safe place to make sure you can access your Excel spreadsheet in the future.

How to remove an Excel password

If you want to share an encrypted Excel spreadsheet with a colleague, you may choose to remove the password. You may also want to remove the password from an encrypted Excel spreadsheet if it's something you work on frequently to save time. Here are some instructions you can use to remove an Excel password on a PC or a Mac device:

1. Instructions for PC

You can follow these instructions to remove an Excel password if you're using a Mac device:

Open the encrypted Excel spreadsheet and type your password into the text box of the pop-up window that appears. Then, click the "OK" button.
In the upper left corner of your screen, click on the "File" tab in your toolbar.
Select the "Info" button from the drop-down menu.
On the info page, click on the "Protect Workbook" box.
Select the "Encrypt with Password" button from the drop-down menu.
Delete the password from the pop-up window that appears so the text box is blank. Then, click the "OK" button to remove the password from your Excel spreadsheet.

2. Instructions for Mac

You can follow these instructions to remove an Excel password if you're using a Mac device:

Open the encrypted Excel spreadsheet and type your password into the text box of the pop-up window that appears. Then, click the "OK" button.
In the upper left corner of your screen, click on the "File" tab in your toolbar.
Select the "Passwords" button from the drop-down menu.
Delete both of the passwords from the pop-up window that appear so the text boxes are blank. Then, click the "OK" button to remove the passwords from your Excel spreadsheet.

3. Instructions to unlock an Excel spreadsheet without a password

While there isn't a simple option to recover your password if you forget it, there are still some steps you can take to access your Excel files by removing the protected view from each of your worksheets. You can follow these instructions to unlock an Excel spreadsheet if you lost your password:

Start by making a copy of the file you want to open. You can do this by right-clicking on the file and selecting "Copy" from the drop-down menu.
Click on the copy of your file to rename it. Change the extension at the end of the file from ".xlsx" to ".zip."
Right-click on the .zip file and select "Extract All" from the drop-down menu.
A pop-up window may appear to ask where you would like to save your extracted file. Choose your desired location and click the "Extract" button.
After you click the "Extract" button, a new pop-up window may appear that shows the contents of the file. Locate the "XL" folder and open it.
Next, locate the "Worksheets" folder and open it. This folder contains all the individual worksheets housed within your Excel spreadsheet. The names of these worksheets typically appear as "sheet1.xml," "sheet2.xml," "sheet3.xml" and so on.
Right-click on "sheet1.xml," click on "Open With" from the drop-down menu and select "Notepad."
Once the Notepad application opens, scan the code until you find a line that begins with "
Identify where this code ends by looking for the first ">" that follows it. Then, highlight and delete all of the text in this code, starting "<" and ending with ">."
Save the modified XML file by clicking the "File" button in the top left corner of your Notepad application and selecting "Save" from the drop-down menu.
Repeat steps seven through 10 for each XML worksheet file.
Select each of the modified XML worksheet files. Then, drag and drop them over the .zip file to overwrite the original XML files.
Click on the .zip file to rename it by changing the extension at the end back to ".xlsx." Then, open the file to access your spreadsheet in an unprotected view without needing to input a password.

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How to change an Excel password

Changing your passwords often is a great way to increase the security of your Excel documents. Here are some instructions you can use to change an Excel password on a PC or a Mac device:

1. Instructions for PC

You can follow these instructions to change an Excel password if you're using a PC device:

Open the encrypted Excel spreadsheet and type your password into the text box of the pop-up window that appears. Then, click the "OK" button.
In the upper left corner of your screen, click on the "File" tab in your toolbar.
Select the "Info" button from the drop-down menu.
On the info page, click on the "Encrypt Workbook" box next to the "Permissions" button.
Select the "Encrypt with Password" button from the drop-down menu.
Delete the password from the pop-up window that appears so the text box is blank. Then, click the "OK" button to remove the previous password from your Excel spreadsheet.
Type a new password into the text box and click on the "OK" button to set it as your password.

2. Instructions for Mac

You can follow these instructions to change an Excel password if you're using a Mac device:

Open the encrypted Excel spreadsheet and type your password into the text box of the pop-up window that appears. Then, click the "OK" button.
In the upper left corner of your screen, click on the "File" tab in your toolbar.
Select the "Passwords" button from the drop-down menu.
Delete both of the passwords from the pop-up window that appear so the text boxes are blank. Then, click the "OK" button to remove the passwords from your Excel spreadsheet.
In the same pop-up window, type the password you plan to use to edit the file. You may choose to use the same password to open and edit the file to make it easier to remember. Once you've entered both passwords, click the "OK" button.
Re-enter both passwords in the text box provided to make sure they match. Then, click "OK" to set your passwords.

Make sure you choose a new password that's easy to remember or write it down somewhere safe. This can help you make sure you can quickly access your Excel spreadsheet in the future.

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