Insert and delete rows option missing from web based Excel

Question

I have an Excel workbook shared between myself and others. The insert and delete row options are no longer there when I right click. They are still there for the columns. I have to open in the desktop version to be able to access these features that I use frequently. Please help in getting these back.

Answer 1

Hi @Jason Eaton, @Tracy, Christine, @Alanna Siobhan Regalbuto and everyone who experience the same issue,

I have researched through Microsoft product help and other official information sources but up to now, there is no Microsoft help article or announcement found and also no troubleshooting guidance addressing this issue.

I strongly recommend submitting in-app feedback so that your experience can be formally logged with Microsoft engineering team. You can do this from Excel > Help > Feedback > Report a Problem or go to Microsoft 365 Feedback Hub > send feedback.

For now, I highly recommend upvoting this answer as well. That way, other users who encounter the same question will see the clarification, and more of them may report similar problem, helping to bring attention to the request. The more reports the team receives, especially from business users, the faster issues like this can be prioritized and resolved as soon as possible. 

I know this is not the experience you expected, and I want to thank you for your patience while the team works on improvements.  

Thank you for your understanding and corporation. Please let me know if there's anything else I can help you with. 

Looking forward to your response.

Answer 2

My workbook is not protected and the delete row functions from the web-based version are now missing. They were there yesterday.

Answer 3

None of this was the issue. I had a previous reply I edited to add more information. I initially commented on my own reply but had more to add and found the edit button. Both were deleted after I edited. It's only that sheet, which contains a table. Another sheet in the same workbook with a table still functions as expected. I suspect it's an issue specific to that table but could not find a setting that would cause that. I can insert or delete rows below table. I can insert or delete columns regardless of whether they land in table. This is restricted to rows.

Answer 4

• First, confirm the sheet protection by going to Review tab > Manage Protection to ensure the issue is not due to the protection settings.
  • It is not protected. Verified by reviewing settings
• Secondly, in Excel web, instead of right-clicking, try going to Home tab > Cells > Insert Rows and see if you can insert row via this approach
  • This works if I am adding a row below the table. Does not work for adding a row within the table. Column works whether within the table or not. I used desktop version to add a column to the left of the table so it was similar to the columns and it did not change. Still cannot insert or delete rows
• Lastly, try opening Excel web in a different browser or incognito mode to see if the issue persists. If it works properly, you can try clear the browser cache + cookies and then try right-clicking action again.
  • Using Chrome did not change anything. I am normally using Edge.

I can drag a blank row up from below the table and it will insert. I cannot drag it back out and delete it. It gives me a warning that I cannot do that to a table.

Up until a week or two ago I was able to insert and delete rows.

Edit to add: I can right click to insert or delete below table. I created a web based workbook with a table and it functions as expected. I also unhid a sheet within this workbook that was the previous years table. I can insert or delete rows there. This must be settings specific to this particular table.

Answer 5

Hi @Jason Eaton,

Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum.

Based on your information, this behavior is usually due to that the worksheet is protected (with Insert/Delete rows action is blocked) so you cannot have the ability to add/remove rows.

However, protection is stored inside the workbook so Excel web and Excel desktop both have the same protection settings, but you can use desktop version to access these features while the web version cannot. Therefore, I suspect this can be an issue with web UI or browser related issue.

I suggest you should clarify these things first:

• First, confirm the sheet protection by going to Review tab > Manage Protection to ensure the issue is not due to the protection settings.
• Secondly, in Excel web, instead of right-clicking, try going to Home tab > Cells > Insert Rows and see if you can insert row via this approach
• Lastly, try opening Excel web in a different browser or incognito mode to see if the issue persists. If it works properly, you can try clear the browser cache + cookies and then try right-clicking action again.

Please understand that the initial response does not always resolve the issue immediately. However, you can try these steps and let me know if it works for you. If not, we can work together to investigate further.

If you have any questions or need further assistance, please feel free to share them in the comments on this post so I can continue to support you.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation. I'm looking forward to your reply.

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