Something’s not right error message when trying to open Excel files (Excel on the web, macOS)

Question

I am trying to open up excel documents on both safari and Google Chrome on my MacBook Air and it comes up with “Something’s not right The page you requested is temporarily unavailable. We apologize for the inconvenience, please check back in a few minutes.”

Opening the document works on my iPhone but not my computer.

i have looked at the other questions for this and I haven’t been able to figure the solution out based on my situation.

how can i get my excel documents to open up properly so i can work on them on my computer?

Answer 1

Hello Hannah Nelson,

Thank you for reaching out in Microsoft Q&A forum.

I understand how frustrating it is when Excel files open on your iPhone but not on your Mac and keep showing “Something’s not right”.

This message normally appears when the browser on the Mac can’t load Office on the web correctly. You can try these steps on the Mac to get Excel opening again:

1. Open the file in a private window in Safari or Google Chrome. This avoids cached data that might block the page from loading.
2. Close every Excel tab > fully quit the browser > reopen it > clear browsing data > sign in again > try opening the file.
3. Make sure only one Microsoft account is signed in inside the browser. If multiple accounts are signed in, sign out of all of them and sign in only with the account that owns the files.
4. Some extensions (ad‑blockers, script‑blockers, security add‑ons) can prevent Office for the web from loading. Turn them off and try again.
5. Try opening the file through OneDrive online instead of from a direct link: Open OneDrive > navigate to the file > open it from there.
6. Install the latest macOS update and make sure Safari/Chrome are up to date.

Hope this helps

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Answer 2

It sounds like you're experiencing issues opening Excel documents from your browser on your MacBook Air. Here are a few steps you can try to resolve this issue:

1. Check for Invalid File Names: Ensure that the file names do not contain any invalid characters that could prevent them from opening. You can refer to the article on Invalid file names and file types in OneDrive, OneDrive for Business, and SharePoint for guidance.
2. Clear Office Document Cache: Sometimes, clearing the Office Document Cache can help. You can find instructions on how to Delete your Office Document Cache.
3. Repair Office Application: If the problem persists, consider repairing the Office application. Instructions can be found in the article on how to Repair an Office application.
4. Library Settings: If you are accessing the documents from SharePoint, check the library settings. Navigate to the library having issues, click on the Gear Icon (in the upper right corner), select Library Settings, then Advanced settings, and check the Opening Documents in the Browser setting.

These steps should help you troubleshoot the issue with opening Excel documents on your MacBook Air.