New Checkboxes Broken

Question

Hi,

I have an attendance tracker spreadsheet in Excel. It has checkboxes for each person's attendance and then COUNTIF formulas at the end to tally how many people attended each day. We also have a macro set up. The sheet is shared between two desktop computers (using desktop and web versions of the app) and two Android mobile devices (both Samsung, one an S22 Ultra and the other an S24+).

It's been working a treat, up until very recently.

We first noticed the issue on the S24+ device, first we thought it was just a visual change in the way the checkboxes displayed, but soon realised any of the formulas that referenced the checkboxes no longer calculated. If a box was ticked on that mobile device, our tallies wouldn't update. However, any boxes ticked on the other mobile device (without the vidual change) or the desktops still worked perfectly. If a box was updated on the other devices, the formulas would recalculate and include the changes made on the S24+ device.

Here is the visual change we noticed:

Old 'working' view:

New 'not working' view:

A bit over a week later, the view on the other mobile device changed and formulas stopped working on there as well. However, both desktops still display and function normally.

We noticed both mobile devices got a notification that a system software update was available around the same time Excel changed (but we did not download or install the update).

This seems odd - I'd understand the app changing AFTER a system update, but not before one. Unless it was just coincidental the app updated on both devices just before the software update came?

What we've tried (all with the same broken functionality as the reuslt):

• Opening the spreadsheet in the Excel app as well as through the Microsoft 365 Copilot app.

• Tried clearing app data and cache, and uninstalling and reinstalling both apps.

• Tried on a different, existing worksheet. Other formulas calculate, but any related to checkboxes don't (but do on desktop).

• Tried creating a new spreadsheet and adding checkboxes, same as above.

Everything works as it shoukd on the desktop devices.

Excel app version:

Microsfot 365 Copilot version:

Hoping there's a fix for this!

Kind regards,

Sonia

Answer 1

Hi Zack,

Thank you for your response!

1. What settings may ovveride auto calculation, and where can I find them on mobile?
2. Adding a =RAND() did not make the formulas referncing the checkboxes recalculate.
3. As mentioned in my original post, we have tested this in existing and new workbooks. The checkboxes and formulas seem broken across all.
4. All apps are running the latest version.

Kind regards,

Sonia

Answer 2

Hello Sonia,

Greetings from Microsoft Community,

I can totally understand your concern. Here are some steps you can take to troubleshoot the issue.

1. Verify Calculation Settings:

• Although mobile Excel doesn’t give you the same control as the desktop version, double-check that no settings override automatic recalculation. Sometimes a temporary glitch can cause formulas not to update immediately.

2. Force a Recalculation:

• As a workaround, try adding a volatile [removed_js] or =RAND()) somewhere in your worksheet. This can force Excel to recalculate all formulas and might update the counts triggered by the checkboxes.

3. Test the Behavior on a New Sheet:

• Create a new workbook with similar checkboxes and COUNTIF formulas. If the new file shows the same issues, that reinforces it’s a problem with the mobile app's recalculation function rather than your specific file.

4. Ensure App is Up to Date:

• Although the error appeared after a notification for a software update—and you didn’t install it—make sure your Excel app on each device is running the latest version. Sometimes updates fix known bugs, or in some cases, you might have been auto updated.

If the issue still persists. You can directly reach out to Microsoft live support on - Contact Us - Microsoft Support or get help app.

Please let us know if this works for you.

Kind regards

Zack | Microsoft Community Support Specialist