Displaying Zeros

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 19, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

2

By default, Excel displays your information pretty much as you enter it. This includes zero values. If you enter a zero, the zero shows on the worksheet. If you don't enter a value in a cell, then Excel shows a blank in that area. If the result of a formula is zero, then that result typically shows, as well. There may be times, however, when you don't want zero values to show. To control the display of zero values, follow these steps:
  1. Choose Options from the Tools menu. Excel displays the Options dialog box.
  2. Make sure the View tab is selected. (See Figure 1.)

    3. Figure 1. The View tab of the Options dialog box.

  3. In the Window Options area, note the Zero Values check box. If it is selected, then zero values are displayed. If it is cleared, then zero values are not displayed.
  4. Click on OK.
You should note that the setting of the Zero Values check box affects not just what you see on the screen, but how information is printed by Excel, as well.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2629) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

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

Spell Checking Forms

Word may be used to create protected forms that limit where the user may input data. Normally spell checking is disabled ...

Discover More

Forcing a Workbook to Close after Inactivity

Tired of your workbooks being left open on the screen where they can be seen by anyone passing by? Here's a way to have ...

Discover More

Specifying a Paper Tray in a Macro

You may want to use a macro to process and then print your document. Part of that printing may involve specifying which ...

Discover More

Professional Development Guidance! Four world-class developers offer start-to-finish guidance for building powerful, robust, and secure applications with Excel. The authors show how to consistently make the right design decisions and make the most of Excel's powerful features. Check out Professional Excel Development today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Conditional Page Breaks

Need to have your worksheet printout start on a new page every time a value in a column changes? There are a couple of ...

Discover More

Understanding Color and Conditional Formatting Codes

When you create custom cell formats, you can include codes that allow you to set the color of a cell and that specify the ...

Discover More

Specifying Superscript Text

Applying different formatting to the text within a cell can seem a bit confusing. This is certainly the case when it ...

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.

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

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 2 + 5?

2024-09-13 14:32:17

AMRV

We often work with insurance companies and their claim numbers sometimes start with "0". Excel was removing the zero which caused problems. There are a couple of ways to resolve that.

1. Set the cell "number" to text (my preference).
2. Add a space or a character (such as an apostrophe) before the number.

2021-06-19 18:00:08

Rohn S, MVP 2012-2018

Time to create a Ribbon equivalent

Ribbon: File menu > Options command > Advanced option > Display Options for this Workbook section > Show Zero in in cells that have zero value
.

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.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2026 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.