Excel spreadsheet not opening

Question

I have two excel spreadsheets that i can no longer open on my desktop computer. The box that comes up on my screen says -

Excel cannot open the file 'FILE NAME' because the file format or file extension is not valid. Verify that the file has not been corrupted and that the file extension matches the format of the file.

Can anyone help me to open my files which i really need back. I have tried a few things i have seen online but not had any luck in doing so.

Answer 1

Dear Ryan,

Thanks for your updates and kindness.

From the latest updates, you encounter the same error message when you open it from the Excel application and Excel for the web.

If you can open other Excel files, I suggest you open them>Options>Save>Save files in this format and check whether .xlsx is selected. If no, select it and open the affected file again to see the result.

If the issue persists, the file may be corrupted. The next step may be to use some tools such as the Open XML SDK to further investigate the content of the file and see whether it can be repaired.

I suggest you post a new thread on the next support channel and send the file to the experts there to see if the file can be repaired.

Office Open Specifications: Microsoft Q&A

Here's a similar thread from there for your reference.

Invalid XLSX Diagnostics - Microsoft Q&A

Sorry for that our category may have limited resources on using the Open XML SDK to repair the file.

Thanks for your understanding and effort.

Sincerely

Cliff | Microsoft Community Moderator

Answer 2

Hi there,

The file extension is xlsx on the spreadsheet. I have saved the file online to the OneDrive and tried to open the file online but i have this box come up on my screen. This workbook couldn't be opened because the file format may not be matching with the file extension.

How can the sheet be repaired so i can open it again?

Thanks

Answer 3

Dear Ryan,

What's the extension of the Excel file, xlsx, xls or other extensions?

To confirm whether the file is corrupted, I suggest you save the file in OneDrive for Business or SharePoint Online and open it with the Excel application to see whether the file can be opened in Excel for the web. If yes, copy the content to a newly created file and then open the newly created file to see the outcome.

Welcome to share any updates at your convenience.

Thank you for your time and effort.

Sincerely

Cliff | Microsoft Community Moderator