5 Quick Ways to Remove Formulas in Excel and Keep Values

When working with spreadsheets, especially in Microsoft Excel, there often comes a moment when you need to preserve the calculated results, but no longer require the formulas that produced them. This can be for several reasons: perhaps you want to share the spreadsheet without revealing your calculations, or maybe the formulas slow down the workbook. This blog will explore five quick methods to eliminate formulas in Excel while retaining their values, ensuring your data is in a static, calculation-ready format.

Method 1: Copy and Paste Special

The classic approach to removing formulas and keeping the values is through Excel’s “Paste Special” feature. Here’s how you can do it:

1. Select the cells with the formulas you want to convert.
2. Press Ctrl + C to copy the selected cells.
3. Right-click on the same cell or a different location and choose “Paste Special”.
4. In the dialog box, select “Values” and click OK.

Method 2: Using Keyboard Shortcuts

If you’re looking for speed, this method is particularly useful:

1. Select the cells containing the formulas.
2. Press Alt + E, then S, followed by V, and hit Enter twice.

Method 3: Find and Replace with Excel Functions

A more complex, yet effective method for handling a large number of formulas is by using Excel’s find and replace feature:

• Step 1: Press Ctrl + G to open the “Go To” dialog box.
• Step 2: Click “Special” and select “Formulas”, then click OK.
• Step 3: Press Ctrl + H to open “Find and Replace”.
• Step 4: In the “Find what” field, enter an equals sign (=). In the “Replace with” field, also enter an equals sign (=). This will essentially find all formulas (as formulas always start with =).
• Step 5: Click “Replace All” to replace all formulas with themselves. Since Excel now considers these formulas invalid, they will become static values.

💡 Note: This method can be risky, especially if cells containing equals signs are not formulas, as they will also be affected.

Method 4: Use a Macro

For frequent tasks or very large datasets, creating a macro can save significant time. Here’s a basic macro for this purpose:

Sub RemoveFormulas()
    Dim rng As Range
    Set rng = Selection
    rng.Value = rng.Value
End Sub

After defining the macro:

1. Select the range with the formulas.
2. Run the macro.

Method 5: Converting to CSV

This is a less conventional approach but works well for quick conversion:

1. Save your workbook as a CSV file. This will cause Excel to output only values.
2. Open the CSV file with Excel, and copy the values back into a new Excel workbook.

Notes on Considerations When Removing Formulas:

• Be aware that removing formulas might remove any conditional formatting or data validation rules.
• Ensure you are not eliminating important dynamic calculations that are still needed.

By following these methods, you can ensure that your spreadsheet remains functional and clear, without the overhead of unnecessary calculations. Whether for sharing data or cleaning up a workbook, these techniques will help you maintain the integrity of your data while freeing up resources and enhancing performance.

Will removing formulas affect cell references?

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Removing formulas and keeping values will replace formula references with the values they produced at that moment. Subsequent changes in referenced cells will no longer affect the converted cells.

How do I ensure my data validation rules aren’t lost?

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To keep data validation rules, you would need to manually reapply them after converting the formulas to values.

Is there a way to undo this operation?

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Excel doesn’t have an automatic way to undo the process of converting formulas to values. However, if you’ve just performed the conversion, you might be able to use the “Undo” feature (Ctrl + Z).