How to Hide Columns in Excel

A complete guide to shielding Excel columns so they aren’t visible to others

Written by Nicole Levine, MFA

Last Updated: July 29, 2024 Fact Checked

Want to hide certain columns in your spreadsheet? Hiding columns in Excel is a great way to get a better look at your data, especially when printing. We'll show you how to hide columns in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, as well as how to show columns that you've hidden.

Steps

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1
Double-click your spreadsheet to open it in Excel.
- If Excel is already open, you can open your spreadsheet by pressing Ctrl + O (Windows) or Cmd + O (macOS) and then selecting the file.
2
Click the letter above the column you want to hide. This selects the entire column.^{[1]
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- For example, to select the first column (column A), click the A at the top of the column.
- If you want to hide multiple columns at once, just click and drag your cursor over the column letters you want to hide.
- You can also select multiple non-adjacent columns by holding down Ctrl as you click each column letter.
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3
Right-click the selected column(s). This brings up a menu.^{[2]
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- If you don't have multiple mouse buttons, hold down the Ctrl key as you click the column(s) instead.
Any selected columns are now hidden.^{[3]
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If you want to show columns that are hidden, just click any column adjacent to those hidden to select it, and then choose Unhide.