How To Lock Cells in Excel From Editing – Simplest Method

Have you ever wanted to lock specific cells in Excel? Not the entire workbook or sheet but only specific cells so that they cannot be edited until you unlock them. For example, maybe you want to protect cells with critical formulas, cells that act as input labels in case of forms, etc.

Thankfully, you can protect and lock cells in Excel pretty easily. This tutorial shows you the exact steps to do it. Let’s get started.

Good to know: How to password-protect an Excel workbook/sheet

Lock Specific Cells From Editing in Excel

1. Open the Excel file.
2. Press “Ctrl + A” to select the entire sheet.
3. Right-click and select “Format Cells“.
4. Go to the “Protection” tab.
5. Uncheck the “Locked” checkbox and click “OK“.
6. Select the cells you want to lock.
7. Right-click and select “Format Cells“.
8. Go to the “Protection” tab.
9. Select the “Locked” checkbox and click “OK“.
10. Go to the “Review” tab in the ribbon menu.
11. Select the “Protect Sheet” option.
12. Type the password in the blank field and click “OK“.
13. Re-type the password and click “OK“.
14. With that, selected cells are locked and are not editable.

Detailed Steps (With Screenshots)

First, open the Excel workbook and go to the sheet where you want to lock the cells. Next, we need to unprotect cells before we can lock them. To do that, select all the cells using the “Ctrl + A” shortcut or by clicking the left-corner button.

Next, right-click anywhere and select “Format Cells“.

Now, go to the “Protection” tab, uncheck the “Locked” checkbox, and click “OK“. This action unlocks all the cells. i.e., it allows you to choose specific cells to lock when you protect your sheet.

Next, we can lock the cells. To do that, select the cells or cell range you want to protect, right-click on the selection, and click “Format Cells“.

Go to the “Protection” tab, select the “Locked” checkbox, and click “OK“.

Now, we must protect the sheet with a password. This allows us to enforce the lock we just added. To do that, go to the “Review” tab on the ribbon menu and click the “Protect Sheet” option.

Now, type a password in the “Password to unprotect sheet” field and click the “OK” button.

Re-type the password when prompted and click “OK“.

That is it. With that, you’ve protected or locked cells in the Excel sheet/workbook. If anyone tries to edit or change the locked cells, they will see the “The cell or chart you’re trying to change is on a protected sheet. To make a change, unprotect the sheet. You might be requested to enter a password” error. But, you or other users can still edit other unlocked cells.

To edit the locked cells, you must first unprotect the sheet. To do that, go to the “Review” tab in the ribbon menu, click the “Unprotect Sheet” option, type the password, and click “OK“.

That is all. It is that simple to lock specific cells in Excel. If you have any questions or need help, comment below. I’ll be happy to assist.