Fill Color Doesn't Display

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated March 17, 2018)

3

Rick wrote about a problem he was having when viewing cells that have a fill color. It seems that the color doesn't show up on the display, but it does show up when he prints the worksheet.

This problem is most likely related to the settings in Windows, not in Excel. Follow these general steps:

  1. Display the Control Panel.
  2. Double-click the Accessibility Options applet. Windows displays the Accessibility Options dialog box.
  3. Make sure the Display tab is visible. (See Figure 1.)

    4. Figure 1. The Display tab of the Accessibility Options dialog box.

  4. Clear the Use High Contrast check box.
  5. Click OK.

The fill colors should now be visible in the worksheet. They were "hidden" to make viewing data easier for those with certain types of visual limitations. This problem is detailed in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/833258

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (3300) 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

Using Non-Printing Notes

Adding notes to your document in Word is a handy tool. But what if you don't want those notes to be seen on the screen or ...

Discover More

Inserting the Author Name

Did you know that Word tries to keep track of who the author of a document is? This information can be easily added to ...

Discover More

Inserting Worksheet Values with a Macro

Macros are often used to process information in a worksheet. You may need your macro to change the values stored in ...

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)

Maintaining the Active Cell

Move from one worksheet to another, and Excel selects whatever cell was last used in the worksheet you are selecting. If ...

Discover More

Arranging Workbook Windows

If you find yourself working with a number of different workbooks at the same time, you may want to arrange your desktop ...

Discover More

Dividing Values

When working with large numbers, you may need a way to quickly divide a range of those numbers by a specific value. ...

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 6 + 1?

2018-10-02 20:39:32

Sohail Naseer

Thanks for tip on "fill color doesn't display".
However, I don't have the "Accessibility Options" applet under the Control Panel.
Help?
Thanks.
Sohail

2018-04-21 06:16:45

Willy Vanhaelen

This tip still applies to Windows XP !!!

2018-04-20 10:57:59

Georgina Aucoin

Thanks for tip on "fill color doesn't display".
However, I don't have the "Accessibility Options" applet under the Control Panel.
Help?
Thanks.
Georgina

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 © 2019 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.