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Turn Off Excel AutoSave in 6 Simple Ways
4 min. read
Updated onSeptember 21, 2024
updated onSeptember 21, 2024
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You can turn off Excel AutoSave easily with the right instructions. That’s where this guide comes in!
Microsoft Excelcomes with various redundancy systems to safeguard unsaved work. They includeExcel AutoSave,AutoRecover, andVersion History. These tools work differently but ensure the most recent update is saved online and offline.
If you ever need to disable the AutoSave feature, read on!
Turn Off Excel AutoSave – 6 Methods
Let’s take a look at the approaches you can choose:
Using the Dedicated Switch
Excel for Microsoft 365 comes with anAutoSaveswitch in thetop left cornerof the software interface.
When active, you should see a shield icon to the right of the workbook name along with theOneDriveorSharePoint Onlinelocationin the top status bar.
To turn off the AutoSave feature,simply slide the toggle button to the left.
If done successfully, the status of the file will change to Saved to the PC.
Please note thatthis applies only to the active workbook. It won’t impact any others saved locally on your PC.
Disable AutoSave for OneDrive & SharePoint Files
If you wish to globally disable Excel AutoSave on your PC, follow these steps instead:
Using Version History
If you disable the Version History feature, Excel will automatically deactivate the AutoSave feature. Here’s how:
Disable AutoSave for Offline Workbooks
Microsoft Excel saves an offline workbook at regular intervals for recovery purposes. Here’s how you can disable this feature:
Turn Off AutoSave for One Workbook
If you wish to deactivate automatic backup for one offline Excel workbook, do the following:
Disable AutoSave on Mac
If you’re usingExcel for Mac, you can follow these steps to pause AutoSave and AutoRecover:
Summary
These are the six best ways to turn off Excel AutoSave for workbooks stored locally on the PC, OneDrive, and SharePoint.
Do you know of a better approach? Feel free to share it in the comments!
If you’ve made custom changes and want to revert back to the original configurations, check outhow to reset Excel to default settings. You can also learn how tostop files from closing automaticallyor how toturn off AutoSave on Word.
More about the topics:Microsoft 365,Microsoft Excel,Microsoft Office
Vlad Turiceanu
Windows Editor
Passionate about technology,Windows, and everything that has a power button, he spent most of his time developing new skills and learning more about the tech world.
Coming from a solid background in PC building and software development, with a complete expertise in touch-based devices, he is constantly keeping an eye out for the latest and greatest!
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Vlad Turiceanu
Windows Editor
Coming from a solid background in PC building and software development, he’s a Windows 11 Privacy & Security expert.
