[Fixed!] Print Titles Must Be Contiguous and Complete Rows or Columns

A strange problem sometimes occurs while printing an Excel worksheet- a dialog box appears with an error message claiming the titles must be contiguous and complete rows or columns. This problem was mainly prevalent in Microsoft Excel 2010-16. But you can still face the problem in their latest versions as many have reported. In this article, we will focus on how to fix the “Print titles must be contiguous and complete rows or columns” errors in Microsoft Excel.

Print Titles Must Be Contiguous and Complete Rows or Columns: 3 Possible Solution

The problem can be traced back to the print titles of the worksheet. For example, let’s take a spreadsheet with a dataset like this.

If we select both the second and the fourth row of the spreadsheet as the row to repeat on top in the print title, we will end up getting the error message titles print titles must be contiguous and complete rows or columns.

In addition, this is common while printing a large number of sheets too. But these are just two of many reasons that can cause this issue to occur. Nevertheless, we will focus on the solutions here in this article that can possibly eliminate the issue for you. All of the solutions involve tweaking print title options. Try each one out to find the one that works for you.

Solution 1: Change ‘Cell Errors As’ Option

The first solution here would be to change the cell error print option. This will help bypass the error and let you print the spreadsheets as they are. To try this out, follow these steps.

Steps:

• First, go to the Page Layout tab on your ribbon.
• Then select Print Titles from the Page Setup group or the downward-right facing arrow at the down-right end of the group.

• At this instant, the Page Setup box will appear. Now select the Sheet tab in it.
• Then click on the Cell error as options under the Print
• After that, select <blank> from the drop-down menu.

• Once you are done, click on OK.

Although not needed in most cases, try to save the file and restart Microsoft Excel. Now you should be able to print the worksheet/worksheets without the “print titles must be contiguous and complete rows or columns” error.

Read More: Print Titles in Excel Is Disabled, How to Enable It?

Solution 2: Clear Print Titles

Another thing you can change from the same Page Setup box is clearing out the page titles. As shown in the demonstration, incorrect or discontinued row or column headers can cause the “print titles must be contiguous and complete rows or columns” error. This is only suitable for workbooks with only one spreadsheet. Follow these steps for a detailed guide.

Steps:

• First of all, go to the Page Layout tab on your ribbon.
• Then select Print Titles from the Page Setup group (or select the arrow sign on the bottom-right of the group.

• As a result, the Page Setup box will appear. Go to the Sheet tab in it.
• Now clear the Rows to repeat at top and Columns to repeat at left fields under the Print titles

• After that, click on OK.

Now, try to print the spreadsheet. You should be able to preview and print the spreadsheet without the error appearing if the header issues were causing the problem.

Read More: How to Print Titles in Excel Except for Last Page

Solution 3: Clear Print Area

Another thing that can cause the annoying error message to appear on top while printing spreadsheets is some form of problem in the print area. If that is indeed the cause, clearing out any selected print area from the printing options will eliminate the problem. This will let Excel select a suitable print area on its own and will continue to print in most cases. Follow these steps to see how you can do that.

Steps:

• Firstly, go to the Page Layout tab on your Excel ribbon.
• Secondly, select Print Titles from the Page Setup group (or click on the arrow on the bottom-right of the group).

• Now select the Sheet tab on the Page Setup box that appears at this point.
• After that, clear out the Print Area and leave it blank.

• Finally, click on OK.

Now you should be able to preview and print the spreadsheet without the error message interrupting the process if any irregularities in the print area were causing the problem.

Read More: How to Remove Print Titles in Excel

Things to Remember

• The second solution is suitable for Excel workbooks with one spreadsheet only.
• For worksheets with multiple spreadsheets, you have to repeat the process for each sheet.
• Although not necessary in most cases, try restarting Microsoft Excel after each process before printing or going to the print preview window.

Conclusion

These were the solutions for the “print titles must be contiguous and complete rows or columns” error message. Hopefully, you can bypass the error now and can comfortably print your Excel spreadsheets. I hope you found this guide helpful and informative. If you have any questions or suggestions, let us know in the comments below.

Related Articles

• How to Set Print Titles in Excel
• How to Set Print Titles to Repeat in Excel
• How to Set a Row as Print Titles in Excel
• How to Set Multiple Rows as Print Titles in Excel
• How to Select Column A as Titles to Repeat on Each Page

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