Excel File Won't Open? How to Recover a Corrupted Workbook

Method 1: Open and Repair

Excel's built-in repair tool works more often than you'd expect:

1. File → Open → Browse to your file
2. Select the file (don't double-click)
3. Click the dropdown arrow next to Open
4. Select “Open and Repair”
5. Try “Repair” first, then “Extract Data” if that fails

Method 2: Safe Mode

If Excel crashes when opening the file, an add-in might be the problem:

1. Hold Ctrl while launching Excel
2. Click Yes when asked about Safe Mode
3. Try opening the file again

If this works, an add-in is causing the crash. Disable add-ins and re-enable one at a time.

Method 3: Check AutoRecover

Excel may have saved a recovery version:

1. File → Info → Manage Workbook → Recover Unsaved Workbooks
2. Or check: C:\Users\[YourName]\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Office\UnsavedFiles

Method 4: Copy to New Workbook

If the file opens but behaves strangely:

1. Create a new blank workbook
2. In the corrupted file, right-click each sheet tab
3. Select “Move or Copy” to the new workbook
4. Check “Create a copy”

This often fixes corruption that's in the workbook structure rather than the sheet data.

Method 5: Extract from ZIP

Modern Excel files (.xlsx) are actually ZIP archives:

1. Make a copy of the file
2. Change extension from .xlsx to .zip
3. Extract the ZIP file
4. Look in xl\worksheets for sheet XML files
5. Open XML files in a text editor to view raw data

You can copy data from the XML into a new workbook. Not pretty, but it saves your data.

Method 6: Previous Versions

Windows may have saved earlier versions:

1. Right-click the file in File Explorer
2. Select “Properties” → “Previous Versions” tab
3. If versions exist, restore an earlier one

OneDrive and SharePoint users: check the cloud version history.

Preventing Future Corruption

• Don't work directly on network drives — copy locally first
• Close files properly (don't just shut down)
• Keep AutoRecover enabled (default 10 minutes)
• Save as .xlsx, not .xls (old format more prone to corruption)

Official Resources

• Repair corrupt workbook — Microsoft recovery guide
• Restore unsaved files — AutoRecover options