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: Putting Headers and Footers on Multiple Worksheets.

Putting Headers and Footers On Multiple Worksheets

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated December 3, 2022)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


One of the typical last touches to a worksheet before printing is to place headers or footers. This is very easy to do if you have only a worksheet or two in which to place the headers and footers. What if you have quite a few worksheets in the same workbook, and you want them all to have the same header and footer.

Actually this isn't too hard to do, either. All you need to do is work with a group of worksheets as a single unit. Just follow these general steps:

  1. Decide which worksheets you want to have the same headers or footers.
  2. Select the first worksheet in the series (click the tab for that worksheet).
  3. Hold down the Shift key as you click on the tab for the last worksheet in the series. A range of worksheets should now be selected. Excel also adds the word [Group] to the title bar to indicate you have a group of worksheets selected.
  4. Set your header or footer as you normally would (as outlined in other issues of ExcelTips). Your changes are automatically made on all the sheet in the selected range.
  5. When done, select a single worksheet by clicking on its tab. (Click on the tab of a worksheet other than the first in the range.)

That's it; you've now set the headers or footers of all the sheets to be identical.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2600) 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: Putting Headers and Footers on Multiple Worksheets.

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

Floating Menus

Some of the secondary menus used in Word can be made into floating toolbars, if you know the trick. It's not that hard; ...

Discover More

Quickly Removing a Toolbar Button

Want to get rid of a toolbar button? There's no need to drag open the menus and dialog boxes; just use the shortcut ...

Discover More

Counting Consecutive Negative Numbers

If you have a range of values that can be either positive or negative, you might wonder how to determine the largest ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Creating a Header

When preparing your worksheet for printing, you may want to add a header that appears at the top of each page that you ...

Discover More

Creating a Footer

Adding a predefined footer to your worksheets is easy, and it helps convey valuable information when you make a printout. ...

Discover More

Header and Footer Formatting Codes

When creating headers and footers in an Excel worksheet, you can use special codes to add or format information. This tip ...

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 7 + 0?

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.