Freeze Panes Not Working in Excel: 3 Ways to Activate it

When working with large sheets, you need to freeze panes to organize data, but what if Freeze Panes is not working in Excel? In today’s guide, we’re going to show you how to fix this issue.

Why isn’t my freeze pane working in Excel?

This can happen if you have Page Layout mode enabled or if you’re not using this feature properly.

What can I do if Freeze Panes is not working in Excel?

1. Try to properly freeze the panes

1. Open the Excel sheet.
2. Select the cell where you want the freeze to end.
   
3. Next, go to View and Freeze Panes and choose the desired option.
   

Many make the mistake of selecting rows and columns that they want to freeze, but that’s not the correct way to do it. Instead, always select just a single cell and all rows and columns before it will freeze.

We have a great tutorial on how to freeze columns and rows in Excel, that explains this in detail, so feel free to check it out.

2. Exit the Page Layout mode

1. Go to the View tab.
2. Next, look at Workbook Views.
3. If the Page Layout is enabled, switch back to Normal mode.
   
4. After that, the Freeze Panes option will become active.

3. Customize the ribbon and add Freeze Panes

1. Go to File. Select Options and Customize the Ribbon.
   
2. Locate Freeze Panes and add it to the ribbon using the menu.
3. You can also create a new group or tab and add Freeze Tabs there.
   

If the Freeze Panes feature is not working in Excel, you likely have Page Layout mode enabled, or you just not using it properly, but as you can see, this can be easily fixed.

If you want to learn more about Excel, we have great guides on how to unhide all rows and columns as well as a guide on how to switch columns and rows in Excel, so don’t miss them.