4 Fixes for “Reference Isn’t Valid” Error in Microsoft Excel for Windows

Pankil is a Civil Engineer turned freelance writer. Since his arrival at Guiding Tech in 2021, he delves into the world of how-tos, and troubleshooting guides for Android, iOS, and Windows. Besides his new-found love for mechanical keyboards, he’s a disciplined footfall fan and loves international travel with his wife.

Try Basic Fixes

Fix 1: Unhide Worksheets

Another common reason Excel may throw this error is if your formula refers to a cell or data source that is no longer valid or available. This can happen if you have hidden some worksheets in your Excel file. Here’s how to unhide them.

Step 1:Open yourExcel workbook, right-click on any worksheet tab at the bottom, and selectUnhide.

Step 2:Select thesheetyou want to unhide and clickOK.

Fix 2: Exit Design Mode

Editing cells in Excel’s Design mode can also trigger the “Reference isn’t valid” error. If so, all the ribbon items under the Developer tab will also appear grayed out. Here’s how to fix that and resolve the error.

Step 1:In your Excel workbook, selectOKwhen the “Reference isn’t valid” dialog box appears.

Step 2:Click theXicon on the toolbar at the top.

Step 3:Click theDesign Modebutton to deactivate it.

Fix 3: Enter the Correct Cell Range Name in the Pivot Table

Do you see the “Data source reference is not valid” error in Excel while creating a pivot table? That could happen if you enter an invalid or unavailable cell range name in the pivot table field. To avoid this, create a new named range and use it to create a pivot table.

Step 1:Open yourExcel workbookand select thecellsyou want to include in the named range.

Step 2:Navigate to theFormulastab and click onName Manager.

Step 3:Click onNew.

Step 4:Typea name for the cell range in the Name field and clickOK.

Step 5:Switch to theInserttab and click onPivotTable. Enter a name for the cell range in theTable/Rangefield and clickOKto create a pivot table.

Fix 4: Save the Excel File to Your Local Drive

Such Excel errors can also occur if you edit a workbook that isn’t stored on your local drive. Trysaving your Excel fileon your local drive to see if that solves the problem.

Open yourExcel file> press theF12key on your keyboard > navigate to your preferred location in the Save As dialog box > clickOK.

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Last updated on 01 August, 2024

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