Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 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: Turning Off Error Checking.

Turning Off Error Checking

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 19, 2024)
This tip applies to Excel 2002 and 2003


While you have Excel 2002 or Excel 2003 open, it is constantly checking in the background for potential errors in your worksheets. If an error is located (or, at the least, what Excel thinks is an error), then the cell is "flagged" with a small green triangle in the upper-left corner of the cell.

If you don't want Excel to check for errors, you can turn the feature off by following these steps in Excel 2002 or Excel 2003:

  1. Choose Options from the Tools menu. Excel displays the Options dialog box.
  2. Make sure the Error Checking tab is displayed. (See Figure 1.)
  3. Figure 1. The Error Checking tab of the Options dialog box.

  4. Clear the Enable Background Error Checking check box.
  5. Click OK.

Any existing green triangles should disappear, and Excel stops checking for errors.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2369) applies to Microsoft Excel 2002 and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Turning Off Error Checking.

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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Determining a Value of a Cell

Cells can store all sorts of information that can be formatted and displayed in a myriad of ways. If you want to quickly ...

Discover More

Deleting a Macro

Don't need that old macro any more? Here's how to get rid of it so that it is no longer a part of your workbook.

Discover More

Setting Up Your Printer

Need your printed output to look its best? You may need to change the settings used by your printer, then. Here's how to ...

Discover More

Program Successfully in Excel! This guide will provide you with all the information you need to automate any task in Excel and save time and effort. Learn how to extend Excel's functionality with VBA to create solutions not possible with the standard features. Includes latest information for Excel 2024 and Microsoft 365. Check out Mastering Excel VBA Programming today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Turning Off ScreenTips

ScreenTips are one of those artifacts of Microsoft trying to make Excel be overly helpful. If the ScreenTips bother you, ...

Discover More

Task Pane Doesn't Appear Properly

Excel 2002 and 2003 include a Task pane that provides quick access to common tasks. The Task pane is normally visible ...

Discover More

Canceling a Menu

Want to cancel whatever menu command you started to use in Excel? The normal method is by pressing Esc, but this is not ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 9 + 4?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

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.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.