Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Excel 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Excel, click here: Resizing Checkboxes.

Resizing Checkboxes

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 15, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


1

When working in VBA, one of the things you can create is known as a "user form." These forms provide you with the ability to essentially create your own dialog boxes. You can add many different types of controls to a user form, if desired. For instance, you can add labels, text boxes, drop-down lists, radio buttons, and many other controls. Some of the controls you can resize; others you cannot. One that you cannot resize is a checkbox. While you can modify the font size used for the label next to the checkbox, you cannot resize the checkbox itself.

If you find the checkboxes in your user forms too small for your taste, you can "work around" them by simulating a checkbox. You do this by actually creating a label instead of a checkbox. Then, change the properties of the label so that it has a transparent background, and that the font being used is Wingdings. You should also make sure that the font is set to a large size, such as 20 or 26 points.

Now, double-click on your label, which should open a code window. The event that you are programming is the Click event for the label, which means it will be executed whenever the label is clicked. Use this as your code:

Private Sub Label1_Click()
    If Label1.Caption = Chr(254) Then
        Label1.Caption = Chr(168)
    Else
        Label1.Caption = Chr(254)
    End If
End Sub

In the Wingding font, Chr(254) is box with a checkmark, and Chr(168) is a box with no checkmark. When you execute the user form and click on the label, it switches between an empty box and a checked box. You can also add other code to the Click event that performs other tasks, as necessary.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the ExcelTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2282) 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: Resizing Checkboxes.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

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What is one less than 8?

2022-07-29 04:57:55

Nia

Hi Allen, hope you read this soon.
I just tried your trick and it works wonderfully.
However I need to create multiple labels, but when I copy paste the label, the vba doesn't adjust to the new label's name.
Is there a way to copy paste the label along with the vba so I don't have to edit vba on each label?
Thanks a lot!


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