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: Specifying an Order for Page Printing.

Specifying an Order for Page Printing

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated January 15, 2020)

When the information you have in worksheet won't fit on a single page, Excel automatically breaks it up—at row or column boundaries—and prints the information on multiple pages. You can control the order in which Excel prints pages.

For instance, let's say the information in your worksheet is both too wide and too long to fit on a single sheet. Instead, the printed material will take four pages to print. The first page printed will always be the information at the top left corner of the print area. You can control whether Excel prints the information beneath page one as page two, or the information to the right of page one as page two. Follow these steps:

  1. Choose Page Setup from the File menu. Excel displays the Page Setup dialog box.
  2. Make sure the Sheet tab is selected. (See Figure 1.)

    3. Figure 1. The Sheet tab of the Page Setup dialog box.

  3. In the Page Order area of the dialog box, specify how you want Excel to print your pages. (Notice that as you make a selection, Excel graphically shows how your printing will occur.)
  4. Click on OK.
  5. Print as normal.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2979) 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: Specifying an Order for Page Printing.

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

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

Drawing Lines

Lines are one of the most common graphic elements to be added to documents. Here's how you can add the lines you want.

Discover More

Changing where a Spreadsheet is Stored

Get lots of files into Drive, and sooner or later you'll want to organize them in some way. Sheets includes a great ...

Discover More

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!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Adding Page Borders to a Printout

Need a full-page border on your Excel printouts? It's not as easy to get one as you might wish. There are a few ways you ...

Discover More

Adjusting Comment Printouts

Need to print out comments, but in a way that you control what is included in the printout? Here's a way you can extract ...

Discover More

Specifying a Print Tray for a Worksheet

If you need to modify where a worksheet is printed (meaning, which paper tray it should use), Excel doesn't provide a lot ...

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}] 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 5 - 2?

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.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR AUTHORS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2020 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.