Can't Update Excel 2007 PivotTables in Excel 2003

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 4, 2025)
This tip applies to Excel 2003

Susan has a workbook that was originally created in Excel 2003 containing several PivotTables. She loaded the workbook in Excel 2007 and added additional PivotTables, then saved it in compatibility mode so it could still be used in Excel 2003. However, if she doesn't open the workbook in Excel 2007 the PivotTables will not update either manually or automatically. It works fine if she opens it in Excel 2007, but not in Excel 2003. Susan wonders if this is normal behavior.

Apparently it is. From the information we can gather, it appears that if a PivotTable is created in Excel 2007, even if the workbook is saved in compatibility mode it will not work properly in Excel 2003. (You won't be able to reliably edit or update the PivotTable in Excel 2003.) The only solution is to recreate the PivotTables in Excel 2003.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (6950) applies to Microsoft Excel 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. ...

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