How to Print Gridlines in Excel (and Fix Missing Lines)

Here's a surprise for anyone printing their first spreadsheet: the grey lines you see on screen don't print. You end up with a page of floating numbers that's hard to follow, especially on a long stock list or a sign-up sheet you're handing round at an event.

Excel hides gridlines on paper by default, but switching them on is a single tick box. Microsoft's help also covers the two snags that stop them appearing, plus a workaround for Excel for the web, which can't print gridlines at all.

Turning on Excel gridline printing in the Sheet Options group

1. Open the sheet you want to print.
2. Go to the Page Layout tab.
3. In the Sheet Options group, find the Gridlines section.
4. Tick the Print box under Gridlines. The View box above it only controls what you see on screen.
5. Go to File and select Print, or press Ctrl+P, and check the preview.
6. Select Print.

The preview on the print screen is your friend here. If the lines show in the preview, they'll show on paper. It's also worth knowing that the setting is saved with the sheet, so once you've ticked it, the lines will print every time you print that tab until you untick it again.

If you only want part of the sheet on paper, select those cells first and set them as the print area on the Page Layout tab. That keeps stray notes or workings off the printout, and it helps with the empty-cell issue covered below.

Printing gridlines on several Excel sheets at once

If you're printing a whole workbook, such as one tab for each month, you don't have to tick the box on every sheet separately. Microsoft says you can select several sheets first, then tick Print under Gridlines once.

1. Click the first sheet tab, then hold Ctrl and click the others. Hold Shift instead to pick a run of tabs next to each other.
2. Check the title bar shows [Group]. That's Microsoft's sign that several sheets are selected.
3. Tick Print under Gridlines on the Page Layout tab.

Remember to click a single tab afterwards to ungroup them, otherwise anything you type lands on every selected sheet at once.

Why the Excel gridline boxes are greyed out

If the Gridlines check boxes look dimmed and won't tick, Microsoft says you probably have a chart, an image or another object selected. Click on an ordinary cell on the sheet, and the boxes should come back to life.

Gridlines missing around empty Excel cells

This one confuses people when they're printing a blank form to fill in by hand. Microsoft says gridlines only print around cells that contain data. Empty rows and columns at the edge of your sheet won't get lines.

You've got two ways round it:

Option	How	Best for
Set a print area	Select the full area, including the empty cells, then set it as the print area	Printing a set block every time
Add cell borders	Select the cells, then Home, Borders, All Borders	Sign-up sheets and blank forms

I tend to use borders for anything people will write on, because they print reliably and you can make them darker than gridlines.

When Excel gridlines still won't print

You've ticked the box and the lines still aren't on the page. Microsoft suggests checking these in order:

1. Draft quality. Go to File, Print, then Page Setup, open the Sheet tab and clear Draft quality if it's ticked. Microsoft also gives the shortcut Alt+P, then S, then P to reach it.
2. The printer driver. Microsoft says an out-of-date driver can be the cause, so get the latest one from your printer maker's own site.
3. Borders as a last resort. If nothing else works, apply All Borders to the cells instead.

Printing gridlines from Excel for the web

Microsoft is clear: printing gridlines isn't supported in Excel for the web. If you're working in the browser, use borders to get the same effect.

1. Select the cells you want to print.
2. On the Home tab, in the Font group, open Borders and choose All Borders.
3. Go to File, then Print, to see a preview.
4. Choose your print options and select Print.
5. Check the preview, then select Print again to finish.

Alternatively, open the file in the desktop app and use the Gridlines tick box there.

Printing gridlines on a Mac

Microsoft's gridline article doesn't give separate Mac steps. In Excel for Mac, look on the Page Layout tab for the same Gridlines section with a Print box. Menus vary by app version, so if you can't find it, the borders method works everywhere.

Gridlines or borders for business printouts

For quick internal printouts, gridlines are perfect. For anything a client or customer sees, I'd usually choose borders, because you control exactly which cells get lines and how thick they look.

• Stock counts and packing lists: gridlines are fine.
• Event sign-up sheets: borders, so empty rows get lines too.
• Client reports: borders on the table only, with no lines around titles or notes.

If your team shares lists in the browser rather than printing them, a tick-box column in Google Sheets is a tidy alternative for event check-ins. And for adding up columns before you print a report, here's how SUM works in Google Sheets.

Frequently asked questions

How do I print gridlines in Excel?

Go to the Page Layout tab and, in the Sheet Options group, tick Print under Gridlines. Then use File, Print, or Ctrl+P, and check the preview.

Why are my Excel gridlines not printing?

Microsoft suggests clearing Draft quality on the Sheet tab of Page Setup, updating your printer driver, or applying borders instead.

Why can't I tick the gridlines Print box?

Microsoft says the boxes are dimmed when a chart, image or other object is selected. Click an ordinary cell first.

Can I print gridlines in Excel for the web?

No. Microsoft says printing gridlines isn't supported in Excel for the web. Use Home, Borders, All Borders instead.

Why don't empty cells get gridlines when printed?

Microsoft says gridlines only print around cells with data. Set a print area that includes the empty cells, or add borders.