How to Show Gridlines in Excel

Gridlines are one of the most fundamental visual elements in Microsoft Excel. They help users distinguish between rows and columns, align data correctly, and interpret spreadsheets more easily. While gridlines are enabled by default in Excel, there are many situations where they may be hidden—intentionally or accidentally. When this happens, working with data can become confusing, especially in large or complex worksheets.

This article provides a comprehensive guide on how to show gridlines in Excel, covering different scenarios such as worksheet views, printing, formatting conflicts, themes, and page layout settings. Whether you are a beginner learning Excel basics or an advanced user managing professional reports, understanding how gridlines work will improve both usability and presentation.

What Are Gridlines in Excel?

Gridlines are the faint gray lines that appear between cells in a worksheet. They serve as visual guides that define the structure of rows and columns.

Key Characteristics of Gridlines

• They are not actual borders—they are display elements.
• Gridlines appear on-screen by default but do not always print.
• They can be hidden or shown at the worksheet level.
• Their appearance can be affected by cell formatting, themes, and view settings.

Understanding that gridlines are different from borders is important. Borders are formatting features applied to cells, while gridlines are part of Excel’s interface.

Why Gridlines Might Be Hidden

Before learning how to show gridlines, it is helpful to understand why they might disappear in the first place. Common reasons include:

• Gridlines were manually turned off
• Cells have a background fill color
• The worksheet is in Page Layout or Page Break Preview mode
• Gridlines are disabled for printing
• A custom theme or template is applied
• Borders are used instead of gridlines

Each of these situations requires a slightly different approach to restore gridlines.

How to Show Gridlines Using the View Tab

The most common and straightforward way to show gridlines is through the View tab.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Open your Excel workbook
2. Go to the View tab on the Ribbon
3. Locate the Show group
4. Check the box labeled Gridlines

Once enabled, gridlines will immediately appear in the active worksheet.

Important Notes

• This setting applies per worksheet, not per workbook
• Switching to another worksheet may require repeating the process
• Gridlines will not appear in cells with fill colors

This method works for most standard situations and is usually the first thing to check when gridlines are missing.

Showing Gridlines from Page Layout Tab (For Printing)

Sometimes gridlines are visible on-screen but do not appear when printing. This is because Excel treats printing gridlines as a separate setting.

Steps to Enable Gridlines for Printing

1. Click the Page Layout tab

2. In the Sheet Options group, find Gridlines

3. Check both:

   • View (for on-screen display)
   • Print (for printed output)

After enabling the Print option, gridlines will appear in print previews and printed documents.

When This Is Useful

• Financial reports
• Forms and worksheets meant for manual completion
• Data tables shared as PDFs

Printing gridlines improves readability, especially when borders are not used.

Showing Gridlines When Cells Have Fill Color

One of the most common reasons gridlines appear hidden is because cells have a background fill color applied.

Why This Happens

Excel does not display gridlines in cells that have any fill color—even white. This includes:

• Highlighted cells
• Conditional formatting fills
• White backgrounds applied manually

How to Restore Gridlines

1. Select the affected cells (or press Ctrl + A to select all)
2. Go to the Home tab
3. Click the Fill Color dropdown
4. Choose No Fill

Once the fill is removed, gridlines will reappear.

Best Practice

If you want visible separation while using fill colors, apply cell borders instead of relying on gridlines.

Showing Gridlines in Page Layout View

Excel has multiple worksheet views, and gridline behavior can change depending on the active view.

Common Worksheet Views

• Normal (default)
• Page Layout
• Page Break Preview

Gridlines in Page Layout View

In Page Layout view, gridlines may appear differently or not at all depending on print settings.

To Ensure Gridlines Are Visible

1. Switch to Normal view (View tab → Normal)
2. Confirm gridlines are enabled in the View tab
3. Check Page Layout → Sheet Options → Gridlines → View

Page Layout view prioritizes print formatting, so gridlines may be hidden unless explicitly enabled.

Showing Gridlines When Borders Are Used

Borders can sometimes give the impression that gridlines are missing.

Understanding the Difference

• Gridlines are light gray and uniform
• Borders are darker and customizable
• Borders override gridline visibility

If borders are applied to all cells, gridlines may not be noticeable.

How to Restore Gridline Appearance

• Remove unnecessary borders
• Use borders selectively (headers or totals only)
• Zoom in to distinguish gridlines from borders

Remember, gridlines and borders do not stack visually—borders take precedence.

Showing Gridlines Using Excel Options

In some cases, gridlines may be disabled at the application level.

Steps to Check Excel Options

1. Click File
2. Select Options
3. Go to Advanced
4. Scroll to Display options for this worksheet
5. Ensure Show gridlines is checked
6. Confirm the gridline color is not set to white

Gridline Color Settings

Excel allows users to change gridline color. If the color matches the background, gridlines may appear invisible.

Set gridline color back to:

• Automatic
• Light gray

This setting applies to the selected worksheet only.

Showing Gridlines in Protected Worksheets

If a worksheet is protected, certain display options may be locked.

What to Do

1. Go to the Review tab
2. Click Unprotect Sheet
3. Enter the password (if required)
4. Enable gridlines using the View tab
5. Re-protect the sheet if necessary

Protection does not usually hide gridlines, but it can prevent formatting changes that restore them.

Showing Gridlines in Excel Online (Web Version)

Excel Online has a simplified interface, but gridlines can still be managed.

Steps in Excel for the Web

1. Open the workbook in your browser
2. Click View
3. Toggle Gridlines on

Keep in mind:

• Some advanced display options are unavailable
• Printing gridlines may depend on browser settings

Showing Gridlines in Charts and Tables

Gridlines in Tables

Excel Tables automatically apply formatting that may obscure gridlines.

To see grid-like separation:

• Use table styles with visible borders
• Convert the table back to a range if needed

Gridlines in Charts

Charts use their own gridlines (axis gridlines), which are unrelated to worksheet gridlines.

To enable chart gridlines:

1. Select the chart
2. Click Chart Elements (+)
3. Enable Gridlines

This is separate from worksheet gridlines.

Best Practices for Using Gridlines Effectively

When to Use Gridlines

• Data entry worksheets
• Large datasets
• Internal analysis documents

When to Hide Gridlines

• Dashboards
• Executive reports
• Print-ready presentations

Professional Tip

For polished reports:

• Hide gridlines
• Use consistent borders
• Apply spacing and alignment

For working files:

• Keep gridlines visible
• Avoid unnecessary fill colors
• Use zoom and freeze panes alongside gridlines

Common Gridline Issues and Solutions

Conclusion

Gridlines play a vital role in making Excel worksheets readable and easy to work with. While they are enabled by default, many factors—such as formatting, views, print settings, and themes—can cause them to disappear. Knowing how to show gridlines in Excel across different scenarios ensures you can quickly restore clarity and maintain productivity.

By understanding the difference between gridlines and borders, managing fill colors carefully, and checking both view and print settings, you can fully control how your worksheets look on-screen and on paper. Whether you are preparing data for analysis or designing a professional report, mastering gridline visibility is a small skill that delivers significant benefits.

If you are building a series of Excel how-to guides, gridline control is an essential topic that connects naturally with formatting, printing, and layout optimization.