Gridlines on Excel spreadsheets

Question

Sometimes, some of the spreadsheets that I receive and work on have some of the gridlines suppressed.  Unchecking then rechecking the "Gridlines" in the View ribbon doesn't change this.  The cells are not merged.  Is there a way to make all the gridlines on a sheet consistently appear?

Answer 1

Hi Pierre,

After reviewing the information provided, the suggestions shared in the AI answer seem to align well with the most common causes of this behavior.

Since you've mentioned that this only occurs with some spreadsheets that you receive, it may be helpful to see whether any of those suggestions match what you're encountering in those particular files. If the issue persists, a screenshot or sample workbook could provide additional context and help the community identify whether there is something unique about the workbook's formatting or configuration.

I hope this information is helpful, and feel free to let me know if you need further assistance.

Answer 2

Yes. In Excel, inconsistent-looking worksheet gridlines are usually caused by cell fill, gridline display settings, or borders being confused with gridlines.

Try this in order:

1. Turn worksheet gridlines on
   • Go to View > Show > Gridlines and make sure it is checked.
2. Check the worksheet display settings
   • Go to File > Options > Advanced.
   • Scroll to Display options for this worksheet.
   • Make sure Show gridlines is enabled.
   • Set Gridline color to Automatic or another visible color.
3. Remove fill from the affected cells
   • Select the cells where lines seem missing.
   • Go to Home > Font group > Fill Color arrow > No Fill.
   • A white fill is not the same as No Fill. If cells are filled white, gridlines can still remain hidden.
4. If the sheet needs visible lines only in certain areas, use borders instead
   • Worksheet gridlines apply to the whole worksheet and cannot be applied only to specific cells or ranges.
   • If only some areas need lines, apply borders to those cells.
5. If needed, test in a new worksheet
   • If gridlines appear normally in a blank worksheet, the issue is likely formatting in the received sheet rather than the Excel setting itself.

Key point: gridlines cannot be customized like borders, and applying fill color hides them for those cells until the fill is fully removed.

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