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: Turning Off Screen Updating.
Many people write their own macros to manipulate the information in a workbook. Many times the macro may do quite a bit with the data, such as selecting different cells, replacing values or formulas, and taking other types of actions. This means that the Excel screen can look like it has "gone crazy" while the macro is running.
One thing you may want to do with your macro to make it run faster and to prevent distracting flashes on the screen is to turn off screen updating while the macro is running. The following macro lines will, respectively, turn off screen updating and then turn it back on in a VBA macro.
Application.ScreenUpdating = False Application.ScreenUpdating = True
The idea is to use the first line near the beginning of your macro, and then use the second line near the end. Thus, the main body of your macro can do its work behind the scenes without the necessity of stopping to update the screen.
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2498) 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: Turning Off Screen Updating.
Excel Smarts for Beginners! Featuring the friendly and trusted For Dummies style, this popular guide shows beginners how to get up and running with Excel while also helping more experienced users get comfortable with the newest features. Check out Excel 2013 For Dummies today!
A few tips on adding a progress indicator that runs during long macro calculations.
Discover MoreFunction keys are used to perform common tasks in Excel. If you want to disable one of the function keys, it's rather easy to ...
Discover MoreWhen creating an application in VBA for others to use, you might want a way for your VBA code to modify or delete other ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
2017-02-21 04:49:20
Barry
Something that is not mentioned is that the macro will run faster as Excel doesn't have to constantly refresh the screen.
It is also useful to turn off automatic recalculation to improve macro execution speed on large spreadsheets.
How much faster will depend on the macro itself and how many changes it makes to a worksheet and then on how much recalculation that is done, but on a large spreadsheet this can make a significant improvement in performance.
2017-02-21 04:43:46
Barry
Something you don't mention is that the macro will run faster as Excel doesn't have to constantly refresh the screen. It is also useful to turn off automatic recalculation How much faster will depend on the macro itself and how many changes it makes to a worksheet and then on how much recalculation that is done, but on a large spreadsheet this can make a significant improvement in performance
2017-02-20 07:54:53
Fernando Martinez
Excel 2016 not responding to Application.ScreenUpdating.Why
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 © 2017 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
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: 
Comments