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How can I print with very faint, light grey gridlines?

Anonymous
2024-03-10T21:39:55+00:00

(Using a Mac.) It's been several years, but I used to be able to print faint, light grey gridlines in my spreadsheets by simply changing the color in the Borders tab of Format Cells.

I'm currently on Excel version 16.78 for Mac, and while I can change the gridlines' color in my View, they are still printing full solid black every time. This is odd. I changed to a light grey in the preferences (because I found that in this forum from 2016), as well as in the Format Cells box.

I would prefer to have gridlines instead of no gridlines, but I want them to be barely noticeable when I print or export to pdf. It will look much better, plus save on ink. Any takers on this issue?

Microsoft 365 and Office | Excel | For home | MacOS

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  1. Jim G 134K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2024-03-13T01:17:30+00:00

    Hi Guy,

    I think you may be confusing two different concepts: gridlines vs cell borders. These look like the same thing, but they are not.

    You format gridlines using Menu Bar > Excel > Preferences > View where you can set the color of gridlines.

    Cell borders are formatted independently of the gridlines. Select a cell or range and press Command-1 to format the borders.

    I suggest you experiment with these settings until you get the result you desire.

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  2. Anonymous
    2024-03-10T22:13:02+00:00

    Hi GuySherman,

    Thank you for contacting us today! As a Microsoft Ambassador, I can help you find self-help solutions for many common issues related to your account, billings or subscriptions.

    By default, gridlines don't appear on a printed Microsoft Excel worksheet or workbook. This article describes how you can make the gridlines appear in your printed worksheets.

    https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/print-gridlines-in-a-worksheet-fdb32f2a-8a5a-41fe-a5b0-0a734fdfade1

    I hope this was helpful and again feel free to contact me with any other questions. I would be very thankful if you could leave a review :)!

    Thanks, Shannah

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