Copying Named Ranges

Graeme has a workbook that has a large number (120+) named ranges defined within it. He would like to copy the range names and definitions to a different workbook. Thus, after copying, the range named MyRange1, which refers to the range C7:H22 in the original workbook, will exist in the target workbook and refer to the same range as that in the original workbook. Nothing else should be copied from the original workbook to the target—just the range names and definitions.

The easiest way to do this is with a macro that steps through each of your defined names and copies the name definition to the target workbook. Here's an example:

Sub CopyNames()
    Dim Source As Workbook
    Dim Target As Workbook
    Dim n As Name

    Set Source = ActiveWorkbook
    Set Target = Workbooks("Book2.xlsx")

    For Each n In Source.Names
        Target.Names.Add Name:=n.Name, RefersTo:=n.Value
    Next
End Sub

Note that the majority of the work in the macro is done in the For Each loop that steps through all the defined names. It creates the name in the target workbook and gives it the same assignment as it had in the source workbook (contained in the Value property).

It should be noted that, by default, named ranges include the name of the worksheet in the Value property. If the source workbook has a named range that refers to, say, Sheet4 and there is no Sheet4 in the target workbook, then the addition of the name fails. The macro doesn't generate an error; it simply doesn't create the new named range. The solution is to either (a) make sure that the target workbook contains the same sheet names as the source workbook or (b) modify the macro so that it recognizes that there are missing sheets and takes whatever action is appropriate.

If you prefer to not create a macro, then the easiest method may be to copy your worksheets from the source workbook to a target workbook. Excel generally copies the named ranges along with the worksheets. The only time this would not be a satisfactory approach is if the target workbook already has worksheets with the same names as those worksheets you might want to copy. In that case, it would be best to use the macro approach.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2469) 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: Copying Named Ranges.