Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 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 Paste Options.
Excel 2003 and 2003 include a feature that really annoys some people: Paste Options. When you paste some tidbit of information in your worksheet, Excel displays a small, floating "button" right near the end of the pasted information. The button looks like the Paste tool on the toolbar: a small clipboard with a piece of paper over it. This is the Paste Options button. If you move your mouse pointer over the button, you find that it is really a drop-down menu, and clicking on the menu gives you a few options that you can apply to what you just pasted.
If you find the Paste Options button distracting, or if you never use it, you may want to turn it off. Follow these steps in Excel 2002 or Excel 2003:
Figure 1. The Edit tab of the Options dialog box.
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (3040) applies to Microsoft Excel 2002 and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Turning Off Paste Options.
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!
As you enter data in a worksheet, you may want to have Excel automatically move from cell to cell based on the length of ...
Discover MoreAfter months or years of naming things (such as cell ranges), you may find your workbook cluttered with a bunch of names ...
Discover MoreIf you type information into a workbook, you may want to make sure that what you type is always stored in uppercase. ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
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 © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Please Note:
This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 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