This article illustrates 9 possible solutions to the issue of the Insert Row option being greyed out in excel. The following picture highlights the problem and the solution discussed here. Have a quick look through the article to see how to fix the issue.
Download Practice Workbook
You can download the practice workbook from the download button below.
9 Ways to Enable a Greyed out Insert Row Option in Excel
1. Press Windows Key+R and Change Microsoft Excel AppData
You can fix the greyed-out Insert Row option by changing the AppData for Excel. First, close all the open Excel files to do that. Then press Win + R. Next, enter %appdata%\Microsoft\Excel in the Open field and, then hit OK.
Now change the .xlb file extension to .old as shown below. After that, you will see that the Insert Row option is working fine.
Read More: Shortcuts to Insert New Row in Excel (6 Quick Methods)
2. Unprotect a Protected Worksheet
The Insert Row option can become greyed out if the worksheet is protected. Select Review >> Unprotect Sheet to unprotect the worksheet. Hopefully, this will fix the issue.
3. Unprotect a Protected Workbook
You cannot use the Insert Row option in a protected workbook either. Therefore the option becomes greyed out. Select Review >> Protect Workbook to unprotect the workbook as shown below. After that, you might need to enter a password for a password-protected workbook.
4. Unselect Columns to Re-enable Insert Row Option
You can’t use the Insert Row option if one or more columns are selected. Unselect the columns to see if the problem is fixed. In the same way, you can’t use the Insert Column option if one or more rows are selected. Then, unselect the rows first to insert or delete columns.
Similar Readings
- How to Insert Multiple Blank Rows in Excel (4 Easy Ways)
- How to Insert Blank Row After Every nth Row in Excel (2 Easy Methods)
- Excel Formula to Insert Rows between Data (2 Simple Examples)
- How to Insert Rows Automatically in Excel (3 Ways)
- How to Move a Row in Excel (6 Methods)
5. Enable a Greyed out Insert Row Option by Exiting from Cell Editing
The Insert Row option may be greyed out because you are in cell editing mode. First Press Esc to exit from cell editing and then try to use the insert row command to see if the problem is fixed.
6. Change Display Options
Press ALT+F+T to open Excel Options. Then go to the Advanced tab and scroll down to Display options for this workbook. After that, mark the radio button for All for the option For Objects, Show. This will resolve the issue.
This issue may arise within a shared workbook. To fix it, first select Review >> Share Workbook. Then uncheck Allow changes by more than one user at the same time and, then hit OK.
8. Remove Unnecessary Add-Ins
You need to remove your Excel Add-Ins if any one of them is causing the problem. Go to File >> Options >> Add-Ins. Then remove the Add-Ins one by one to see which of them is causing it. Then add the other Add-Ins again.
9. Fix Greyed out Insert Row Option with Excel VBA
You can reset the commands with excel VBA to solve the problem too. First, press ALT+F11 to open the VBA window. Then select Insert >> Module as shown below. This will create a blank module.
After that, copy the following code.
Public Sub Reset_Menu()
CommandBars("column").Reset
CommandBars("row").Reset
CommandBars("Cell").Reset
End Sub
Now, paste the copied code into the blank module. Then, press F5 to run the code. This should fix the problem after that.
Things to Remember
- You can try deleting the following registry from the registry editor to reset the commands >> HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office|16.0\Excel\Options.
- Sometimes restarting your PC or updating your Office automatically fixes the bugs. So, you can try doing that too.
Conclusion
Now you know how to fix the issue of greyed out Insert Row option in excel. Please let us know if this article has helped you to solve your problem. You can also use the comment section below for further queries or suggestions. Do visit our ExcelDemy blog to explore more on excel. Stay with us and keep learning.
Related Articles
- VBA Macro to Insert Row in Excel Based on Criteria (4 Methods)
- Insert Rows in Excel Based on Cell Value with VBA (2 Methods)
- How to Insert a Total Row in Excel (4 Easy Methods)
- Excel Macro to Add Row to the Bottom of a Table
- Macro to Insert Multiple Rows in Excel (6 Methods)
- Macro to Insert Row and Copy Formula in Excel (2 Methods)
You can also try to delete rows that you are not using.
In my case the table for some reason filled up all 100.000 entries of excel and there was no space for a new one anymore.
Just delete some rows and you will be able to add new ones.
Good luck!
Thank you very much for your suggestion. Good to know that.
Hopefully, this will help someone.
And Good Luck to you too!
Thank you Shamim! The 1. Press Windows Key+R and Change Microsoft Excel AppData helped me!
Hi GIRIDAR N,
Thanks for your appreciation and we are glad to help you. For any types of Excel-related problems kindly reach out to us.
Regards
ExcelDemy
thank u very much
Dear Raja,
You are most welcome.
Regards
ExcelDemy
Shamima thanks a lot. This solved my problem with option 1.
Dear S Roy,
You are most welcome.
Regards
ExcelDemy