To repair a corrupted Excel file, use File → Open, select the workbook, click the arrow next to Open, and choose Open and Repair, then pick Repair. If Repair fails, run it again and choose Extract Data to pull out values and formulas.
Microsoft documents Open and Repair as the first step for a workbook that will not open, and Excel's AutoRecover setting (10 minutes by default) is the safety net for unsaved work. The sections below cover those routes, plus an HTML round-trip and manual ZIP/XML extraction for stubborn files.
Before trying anything, make a copy of the broken file and run every method against the copy. If a recovery attempt makes things worse, you still have the untouched source. Backup first, repair second.
Excel tries to recover as much of the workbook as it can. Microsoft says to choose Repair to recover as much data as possible, so try it first.
If Repair fails, Extract Data retrieves the values and formulas from the workbook without other workbook elements, so formatting and objects may not come across.
Save any recovered result under a new name and keep the original untouched until you confirm the data is complete.
Launch Excel — but don't double-click your broken file. That's the mistake most people make. Instead, open Excel first with no file loaded, then go to File → Open → Browse. Navigate to your corrupted workbook but don't click it yet.
Click once on the file to highlight it. Now look at the Open button at the bottom-right of the dialog. See the tiny downward arrow on its right edge? Click that arrow, not the button. A short menu appears with options including Open and Repair. Choose it.
Excel offers Repair or Extract Data. Pick Repair first. Save the repaired file under a new name immediately, and never save over the original until you have confirmed the recovery is complete.
Run Open and Repair again and choose Extract Data, which retrieves values and formulas without other workbook elements. Microsoft also lists other fallbacks: set calculation to manual before opening the file, link to the corrupted workbook with external references to pull only the data, or use a macro to extract chart source data.
After any repair, open the result and check that your formulas, named ranges (Formulas → Name Manager) and any macros are still present before you discard the original or a backup copy.
| Method | Where to find it | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
| Open and Repair: Repair | File → Open, arrow next to Open | The workbook will not open normally; Microsoft's first step |
| Open and Repair: Extract Data | Same menu, after Repair fails | You need values and formulas back |
| AutoRecover | File → Options → Save (default 10 minutes) | Excel crashed before you saved |
| Always create backup | File → Save As → Tools → General Options | You want a previous version kept automatically |
| Manual calculation, external references, or macro | Fallbacks in Microsoft's repair guide | Open and Repair cannot recover the data |
| OneDrive Version history | OneDrive or SharePoint file | A cloud-stored file was overwritten or damaged |
Start Excel itself rather than clicking the broken file, so a new blank workbook appears.
Use Excel's Recover Unsaved Workbooks command (under File) to browse files AutoRecover has kept.
In File → Options → Save, AutoRecover saves recovery information every 10 minutes by default.
Pick the file by timestamp, open it, verify the data, then use Save As with a proper name and folder.
Lost a file you never saved, or Excel crashed mid-save? AutoRecover can create recovery files at set intervals. Microsoft says the default is 10 minutes, and you control it under File → Options → Save via "Save AutoRecover information every" minutes. Make sure "Disable AutoRecover for this workbook only" is not checked.
Open Excel and look for Excel's Recover Unsaved Workbooks command under File to browse saved drafts. Open the candidate, check the contents, and save it properly with File → Save As.
A shorter interval than the 10-minute default means less work is lost after a crash. Open Excel Options → Save to change it. For workbooks stored in OneDrive or SharePoint, use OneDrive's Version history to restore an earlier version instead.
You can also enable Microsoft's backup option: File → Save As → Tools → General Options → Always create backup, so a previous version remains if a file becomes corrupted.
This is a community technique, not one Microsoft documents, so treat it as an experiment on a copy. The idea is that saving in a different format can rewrite the workbook cleanly when the original opens partly.
Open what you can (for example via Open and Repair), choose File → Save As, and save as Web Page (*.htm; *.html). Close Excel, open the saved .html file in Excel, and then Save As → Excel Workbook (*.xlsx). Charts and pivot tables may not survive the round trip, so verify the result.
Make a copy of your corrupted .xlsx file. Right-click → Rename and change the extension from .xlsx to .zip. Windows may warn that changing the extension can make the file unusable. If you don't see the extension at all, enable File name extensions in File Explorer's View tab.
The renamed file is now a ZIP archive. Double-click it to open it like any other archive. You'll see a folder tree inside: _rels, docProps, xl. Your data lives in xl/worksheets/ and xl/sharedStrings.xml.
Inside xl/worksheets/ you'll find files named sheet1.xml, sheet2.xml, and so on — one per worksheet. Extract these to a folder you can work in. Each .xml file contains the cell data in a structured tag format like <c r="A1" t="n"><v>42</v></c> where r is the cell reference and v is the value.
Open the .xml in Notepad++ or VS Code. Text values are stored as indexes into sharedStrings.xml, not inline — so you'll need that file too if your sheet contains text. Numbers and formulas appear directly in the sheet files.
For small sheets, you can copy values manually into a fresh workbook — slow but reliable. For larger sheets, use Excel's Get Data → From File → From XML feature (under the Data tab) to import the sheet1.xml directly. Excel parses the XML and rebuilds the cells.
This route bypasses Excel's normal loading, so it may work on files that will not open. It is tedious and not guaranteed, so use it on a copy.
If Open and Repair, Extract Data, and Microsoft's other fallbacks do not recover the file, check whether your file lives in OneDrive or SharePoint and try Version history to restore an earlier copy, or restore from a backup you made yourself. Microsoft's own documented routes should come before any outside software.
Third-party repair services exist, but this guide does not recommend a specific product because Microsoft does not endorse one.
Never upload sensitive financial, HR, or proprietary workbooks to an unknown online service, since you cannot verify how the file is stored or handled. For confidential files, stick to local methods and your organization's IT support.
If you want to learn more Excel troubleshooting techniques, our guide on recovering excel files goes deeper on AutoRecover edge cases, and the macros are disabled excel walkthrough covers a related class of opening errors that look like corruption but aren't.
Most lost work is preventable with a few habits that cost nothing.
Start with AutoSave. For workbooks stored in OneDrive or SharePoint, AutoSave keeps changes synced, and OneDrive's Version history lets you restore an earlier version of a file. For files that must stay local, shorten the AutoRecover interval under File → Options → Save (the default is 10 minutes) and consider the Always create backup option.
Unreliable network connections can interrupt a save and leave a file partly written. A safer habit is to edit a local copy, save it, and then copy the finished file to the share. Avoid using Open in Excel against a slow network path for large files.
Very large workbooks are slower to save and harder to work with. If yours keeps growing, look for unused formatting on whole columns (Ctrl+End shows the last used cell), unused defined names (Formulas → Name Manager), and large embedded images. Splitting one massive workbook into linked files is often easier to manage.
Killing Excel partway through a save can leave a half-written file. Wait for Excel to finish where you can.
A timeout during a network save can interrupt the write. Edit locally, then copy to the share when done.
Problem add-ins can cause crashes. Disable add-ins one by one when crashes follow a pattern.
A full or failing drive, or software interrupting writes, can damage files. If several files fail together, check the disk.
If Excel crashes at consistent moments, try disabling add-ins one at a time. Go to File → Options → Add-ins, change Manage to COM Add-ins or Excel Add-ins, click Go, and uncheck items one at a time, restarting Excel between toggles.
Another diagnostic step is Safe Mode, which starts Excel and without add-ins. If the file opens there, the problem is likely an add-in or setting rather than the file. If it still will not open, the file itself may be damaged and the repair methods above apply.
For repeated corruption, check your disk health and free space, since a full or failing drive can interrupt saves.
When you recover a file, save the recovered copy in at least two places before further editing, and check formulas, formatting, and sheet protection afterward. Treat backup discipline as the real solution: AutoSave, OneDrive sync, and a short AutoRecover interval make corruption a minor inconvenience.
Go to File → Open, select the corrupted workbook, click the arrow next to the Open button, and choose Open and Repair. Then pick Repair, which Microsoft says recovers as much data as possible. If that fails, run it again and choose Extract Data. Always work on a copy of the file and save any recovered result under a new name.
Extract Data is the second option in Open and Repair. Use it when Repair fails. According to Microsoft, it retrieves the values and formulas from the workbook without other workbook elements, so formatting, charts, and other objects may not come back. Save the extracted result as a new workbook and check that the numbers and formulas match what you expect.
Start Excel and use its Recover Unsaved Workbooks command under File to browse files AutoRecover has kept. AutoRecover saves recovery information every 10 minutes by default, and you can change that under File → Options → Save. Open the draft you need, check the contents, and save it under a real file name straight away.
Microsoft states that the AutoRecover default is 10 minutes. You can change it under File → Options → Save by editing the box labeled Save AutoRecover information every, and making sure Disable AutoRecover for this workbook only is not checked. A shorter interval means less work is lost if Excel crashes, though it has no effect on files you have already saved.
Microsoft lists three fallbacks in its repair guide: set calculation to manual before opening the workbook, link to the corrupted file with external references to pull in only the data, or use a macro to extract chart source data. You can also restore an earlier version from OneDrive Version history or from a backup copy.
Turn on Always create backup: choose File → Save As → Tools → General Options and check that box. Excel then keeps a previous version alongside your file, which Microsoft recommends in case the workbook becomes corrupted. If your file is stored in OneDrive or SharePoint, its Version history can also restore an earlier saved copy.
The cause may be an add-in or the file itself. Start Excel in Safe Mode, which runs without add-ins, and try again. If the file opens, disable add-ins one at a time under File → Options → Add-ins to find the culprit. If it still crashes in Safe Mode, the file is likely damaged, so run Open and Repair on a copy.
Keep AutoRecover on with a short interval, enable Always create backup, and use AutoSave for OneDrive or SharePoint files so earlier versions exist. Avoid force-quitting Excel while it saves, and edit a local copy instead of working over an unreliable network connection. Also disable add-ins you do not use, and keep a backup outside your cloud account.