Using Color in Headers and Footers

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 13, 2020)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


When creating headers and footers for your worksheets, you can modify many attributes used by Excel. When you design a custom header or footer you can click the A tool in the Header or Footer dialog box to select a font or to change other attributes of the font (size, style, etc.).

If you are using Excel 97 through Excel 2003, one thing you cannot change is the color used for the text. Early versions of Excel allowed you to modify header and footer colors, but the capability was removed beginning in Excel 4.0.

If you can't change the color, the only thing you can do is try a workaround. If you are using Excel 97 or Excel 2000, you can simply create your "header" in the first row of your worksheet, and then repeat that row at the top of each printed page. (There is no way to repeat a row at the bottom of a page, so you'd be out of luck for color footers.)

If you are using Excel 2002 or Excel 2003, you can create a color graphic, and then place that graphic into the header or footer. This is often done when you need color in logos and other graphic elements, and you need them to repeat on multiple pages.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (3251) 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

Saving Embedded Images to Individual Files

Word has long allowed you to embed pictures or images in the documents you create. What if you want to get those pictures ...

Discover More

Comments Use Tiny Font when Printed

When you print out your documents, do any comments in the document appear very tiny on the printout? It could be because ...

Discover More

Word Marks Mixed Case Acronyms as Incorrect

Many acronyms (such as DoD) are considered correct when they used mixed uppercase and lowercase. Word may not seem them ...

Discover More

Save Time and Supercharge Excel! Automate virtually any routine task and save yourself hours, days, maybe even weeks. Then, learn how to make Excel do things you thought were simply impossible! Mastering advanced Excel macros has never been easier. Check out Excel 2010 VBA and Macros today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Putting Headers and Footers On Multiple Worksheets

You can easily create headers and footers for multiple worksheets by working with a selection set of the worksheets you ...

Discover More

Selective Headers and Footers

Want to print different headers or footers on different parts of your worksheet? Excel has no inherent way to do this, ...

Discover More

Putting Spreadsheet Names in Headers or Footers

One of the things you can add to your page header or footer is the name of your workbook file name. Here's how to make ...

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 4 + 9?

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.