Changing the Color of Worksheet Gridlines

Summary: Want the gridlines in your worksheet to be a different color? You aren't limited to stodgy black; Excel lets you make them just about any color you want. Here's how to make the change. (This tip works with Microsoft Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, Excel 2003, and Excel 2007.)

Most people using Excel leave the gridlines visible so that they can easily see where the various cells are. By default the gridlines are a light gray. You can easily change the gridlines to a different color by following these steps if you are using a version of Excel prior to Excel 2007:

Choose Options from the Tools menu. Excel displays the Options dialog box.
Make sure the View tab is selected. (Click here to see a related figure.)
Ensure the Gridlines check box is selected.
Using the Gridlines Color drop-down list, choose the color you want to use.
Click OK.

If you are using Excel 2007 then you should follow these steps:

Click the Office button and then click Excel Options. Excel displays the Excel Options dialog box.
Click Advanced at the left side of the dialog box.
Scroll through the options until you see the Display Options for this Worksheet section. (Click here to see a related figure.)
Ensure the Show Gridlines check box is selected.
Using the Gridline Color drop-down list, choose the color you want to use.
Click OK.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2374) applies to Microsoft Excel versions: 97 | 2000 | 2002 | 2003 | 2007

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Changing the Color of Worksheet Gridlines