5 Ways to Overcome 'Excel 2016 Is Not Responding' Error


Excel 2016 Is Not Responding

Microsoft Excel is the most widely used spreadsheet application, which stores numerical data in a grid format of multiple rows and columns. Even it is commonly useful for Windows, Android, MacOS, and iOS users for saving their own financial data. Due to its advanced features like graphs, macro language, calculations, and pivot tables, both Individuals as well as Enterprises have all benefited considerably. There is such a wide variety of ways like calculate averages, computing profit/loss for creating charts and graphs, etc for presenting and organizing the data too.

Apart from, sometimes users cannot open Excel 2016 file due to power failure, improper system shut down and so on. In the following segment, we will describe the most effective ways by which users can easily resolve ‘Excel 2016 is not responding’ error.

After discussing all benefits, there is an instance due to which Excel 2016 is not working. Here, let us look:

For example, Users have been worked overnight on an important document, to be presented for next day meeting. Moreover, the Excel spreadsheet consists vital graphs and charts, and much more. When they start to save it, can cause a power failure, or their desktop shuts down randomly without warning. When the power is up, users be sure to restart their PC to check the Excel. At their convenience, a message pops up – “Excel Crashed” or “Microsoft Excel 2016 is not responding”. It can be a frustrating situation for all users so we are providing such a trustworthy solution to overcome this issue.

Ways to Resolve 'Excel 2016 is not Responding' Issue

Go through the following workarounds that help to overcome the Excel 2016 error as discussed below:

Method 1: Select a Safe Mode to Run Excel

This solution is an effortless and Do-It-Yourself solution. Running the Excel program in a safe mode allows the users to overcome such type of issues. Follow below steps to recover the Excel spreadsheet:

  • Press Windows + R shortcut key and then, open the command prompt
  • Then, enter the excel.exe/safe and it will start Microsoft Excel in the Safe Mode
  • Now, you attempt to open a file and your problem has been resolved
open excel in safe mode

Method 2: Change the Default Printer

Yet, this is another simple and elegant solution. You might be wondering what the connection is between the Excel spreadsheet and a default printer. While opening an Excel sheet, it can communicate with a printer to find out supported margins. If it may get the supported margin, it works fine in that case; however, if it cannot receive them, then it crashes down. Thus, altering the default printer is a great option. Follow such steps:

  • Select the Control Panel
  • Then, click on the Printer and Devices option
  • Now, clicking right on Microsoft XPS Document Writer to set it as a default printer
  • In last, to re-open your Excel spreadsheet, the issue may have been resolved
change printer setting

Method 3: Upgrading the Latest Versions

It might not be wrong to say that those issues also occur if and only if, the latest Windows edition and Office Updates not installed. Therefore, make sure that users have the updated versions and latest updates on their computer system. If in any case, users have missed, then, update it suddenly. It is recommended to set the installation as well as an up-to-date option to the Automatic mode as covered in the below steps:

  • Click on the Control Panel
  • Then, choose the System and Security option
  • By Start Maintenance option you can set it to an Automatic Mode
upgrade latest version

Method 4: Microsoft Office Repair option

Corruption in Microsoft Office (Excel, Word) can also generate the error messages. Another alternative way is Microsoft Office Repair to fix this ‘Excel 2016 is not responding' issue. To do so, follow these steps:

  • Exit all running Microsoft Office programs
  • Click on the Control Panel icon
  • Now, selecting the Features and Programs option
  • After this, choose the Microsoft Office
  • Then, click on the Repair Office option
MS Office Repair Option

Method 5: Uninstall & Reinstall MS Office 2016

If all the above-stated solutions fail to repair the Excel files crashing, hanging or freezing, then users can easily uninstall and reinstall MS Office to fix this issue.

Install & Uninstall Office

If none of these solutions works properly, then one can take help of the third-party software i.e. Excel Recovery. Moreover, it is a secure and reliable Excel file repair solution to resolve this “Microsoft Excel is not responding” error. Also, it helps to recover the Excel file corruption problem as well.

Final Words

While saving Excel spreadsheets on system various error may occur due to power failure, PC suddenly becomes shut down, which creates a hurdle in the continuity of the workflow. Then, the main query of every user arises that how to Fix ‘Excel 2016 is not responding’ Error constantly. Therefore, in the above section five most promising resolutions have been discussed to overcome the error issue. Else, one can utilize an alternate approach named as Excel Recovery that helps to resolve an Excel 2016 error message.