Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 28, 2025)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
Excel allows you to easily change whether a cell is formatted as locked or unlocked. This attribute is handled on a cell-by-cell basis, even though the effects of the locking (or unlocking) are not evident until such point as you protect the entire worksheet.
Since locking and unlocking can be done on an individual cell basis, you may wonder if there is a way to display the lock status (locked or unlocked) of all your cells in a worksheet, at one time, without the need to check each cell individually.
The default lock status for cells is locked, so it probably makes more sense to select those cells that are unlocked. One way you can do that is to follow these steps, if you are using Excel 2003:
Figure 1. The Protection tab of the Find Format dialog box.
At this point, Excel will do one of two things. If it finds any unlocked cells, the addresses of those cells are listed on the screen. If it doesn't find any unlocked cells, then it informs you that it can't find them.
The above technique only works in Excel 2003 because the capability to search for formatting was only added in that version of Excel. Regardless of the version you are using, you can use conditional formatting to highlight unlocked cells. Follow these steps:
Figure 2. The Conditional Formatting dialog box.
=CELL("protect",A1)=0
Figure 3. The Format Cells dialog box.
Now all the cells in your worksheet that are unlocked will have the formatting you defined in step 6.
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (10765) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Checking Lock Status of Cells.
Dive Deep into Macros! Make Excel do things you thought were impossible, discover techniques you won't find anywhere else, and create powerful automated reports. Bill Jelen and Tracy Syrstad help you instantly visualize information to make it actionable. You’ll find step-by-step instructions, real-world case studies, and 50 workbooks packed with examples and solutions. Check out Microsoft Excel 2019 VBA and Macros today!
You've protected and saved your worksheet with explicit instructions that you be allowed to insert and delete rows. But ...
Discover MoreExcel allows you to protect your worksheets easily—and that includes if you need to protect only a single worksheet ...
Discover MoreIf you share a workbook with others in your office, you will probably want to make sure that some of the worksheets don't ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments