How to Quickly Remove Gridlines in Excel (Easy Shortcut)

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Are you looking for a quick and easy way to hide gridlines in Microsoft Excel? Gridlines are the faint gray lines that appear around each cell in an Excel worksheet. While gridlines can be helpful for visually separating data, sometimes you may want to remove them for a cleaner look, especially when printing.

The fastest way to turn off gridlines in Excel is to use a simple keyboard shortcut. Just press Alt + W + V + G on Windows or Option + Command + V + G on a Mac. This will instantly hide all gridlines in the current worksheet.

Using the Keyboard Shortcut to Remove Gridlines

The quickest way to hide gridlines in Excel is with a keyboard shortcut:

PlatformShortcut
WindowsAlt + W + V + G
MacOption + Command + V + G

Here’s how it works:

  1. Open your Excel worksheet
  2. Press the shortcut keys for your platform:
  • On Windows: Hold down Alt, then press W, V, G
  • On Mac: Hold down Option and Command, then press V, G
  1. Excel will instantly remove all gridlines from the current worksheet

That’s it! This shortcut is the fastest way to turn gridlines off in Excel. It works in all versions of Excel for Microsoft 365, Excel 2021, 2019, 2016, 2013, and 2010.

Restoring Gridlines with the Shortcut

What if you change your mind and want to unhide gridlines? No problem – just press the same shortcut again to toggle gridlines back on:

Alt + W + V + G (Windows)
Option + Command + V + G (Mac)

Other Ways to Remove Gridlines in Excel

In addition to the keyboard shortcut, there are a couple of other ways to hide grid lines in Excel:

Using the View Tab

You can also turn off gridlines from the ribbon in Excel:

  1. Go to the View tab
  2. In the Show group, uncheck the box next to Gridlines

Excel will hide the gridlines in the current worksheet. To show gridlines again, just re-check the Gridlines box.

Using Page Layout View

Another option is to switch to Page Layout view and disable gridlines there:

  1. Go to the View tab
  2. Click Page Layout to switch to Page Layout view
  3. Go to the Page Layout tab
  4. In the Sheet Options group, uncheck the box for View under Gridlines

This turns off gridlines in Page Layout view. Note that this only affects how gridlines appear in this view – they will still show in Normal view unless you also disable them there.

Hiding Gridlines in Specific Areas

What if you only want to remove gridlines in certain areas of your worksheet? You can do this by changing the formatting of specific cells or ranges:

  1. Select the cell(s) where you want to hide gridlines
  2. Press Ctrl + 1 (Windows) or Command + 1 (Mac) to open the Format Cells window
  3. Go to the Border tab
  4. Under Line, select None
  5. Click OK to apply the change

Excel will remove the gridlines around the selected cells. The gridlines will still appear in the rest of the worksheet.

You can also access cell borders from the ribbon:

  1. Select the cell(s)
  2. Go to the Home tab
  3. In the Font group, click the arrow next to the Borders button
  4. Choose No Border

Using a VBA Macro to Hide Gridlines

For more control over gridlines, you can use a VBA macro. This lets you hide gridlines on multiple sheets at once or toggle gridlines on/off with a button.

Here’s a sample macro to remove gridlines from every worksheet in a workbook:

Sub HideAllGridlines()
    Dim ws As Worksheet
    For Each ws In ActiveWorkbook.Worksheets
        ws.DisplayGridlines = False
    Next ws
End Sub

And here’s a macro to toggle gridlines in the current worksheet:

Sub ToggleGridlines()
    ActiveWindow.DisplayGridlines = Not ActiveWindow.DisplayGridlines
End Sub

To use these macros:

  1. Press Alt + F11 to open the Visual Basic Editor
  2. Go to Insert > Module to add a new module
  3. Paste in the macro code
  4. Press F5 or click the Run button to run the macro

You can attach these macros to a button or custom ribbon tab for easy access.

Printing Without Gridlines

By default, Excel prints worksheets with gridlines. But what if you want a printout without the grid?

To print without gridlines:

  1. Go to the Page Layout tab
  2. In the Sheet Options group, uncheck the box for Print under Gridlines
  3. Print your worksheet as usual

Excel will print the worksheet without any gridlines. The gridlines will still appear on screen, but they won’t show up on the printed page.

You can also set this option in the print preview window:

  1. Go to File > Print to open the Print screen
  2. Click the arrow under Settings
  3. Under Sheet Options, uncheck the box for Print Gridlines
  4. Click Print to print the gridline-free worksheet

Summary

Excel’s gridline shortcut makes it easy to hide and unhide gridlines with a quick keystroke. Just press Alt + W + V + G (Windows) or Option + Command + V + G (Mac) to instantly remove gridlines from the current worksheet.

We’ve also looked at other ways to remove gridlines in Excel, including:

  • Using the View tab on the ribbon
  • Hiding gridlines in Page Layout view
  • Changing border formatting for specific cells
  • Using VBA macros to control gridlines across multiple worksheets

Finally, we saw how to print Excel worksheets without gridlines by adjusting options in Page Layout view or the print settings.

With these tips and shortcuts, you can easily hide gridlines to create clean, professional-looking Excel worksheets. Whether you’re prepping a spreadsheet for printing or just want to declutter your workspace, you now have the tools to quickly turn off gridlines in Excel.

FAQs

What is the keyboard shortcut to remove gridlines in Excel?

The keyboard shortcut to remove gridlines on Windows is Alt + W + V + G. On Mac, press Option + Command + V + G to remove gridlines.

How do I remove gridlines using the ribbon in Excel?

Go to the View tab on the ribbon and uncheck the Gridlines box in the Show group.

Can I hide gridlines in specific areas of a worksheet?

Yes, select the cells where you want to hide gridlines, press Ctrl + 1 (Windows) or Command + 1 (Mac) to open the Format Cells window, go to the Border tab, select None under Line, and click OK.

How can I remove gridlines from multiple worksheets at once?

You can use a VBA macro to remove gridlines from all worksheets in a workbook. Press Alt + F11 to open the Visual Basic Editor, insert a new module, paste in the macro code, and run the macro.

How do I print an Excel worksheet without gridlines?

Go to the Page Layout tab, uncheck the Print box under Gridlines in the Sheet Options group, and then print your worksheet as usual.

Will removing gridlines in Excel delete my data?

No, hiding or removing gridlines only affects the visual appearance of your worksheet. It does not delete or modify any of your data.

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