4 Ways to Fix Formulas Not Working in Google Sheets

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.

Fix 1: Modify Spreadsheet Calculation Settings

Incorrect calculation settings are another reason Google Sheets formulas may not work or update. Here’s how to fix them.

Step 1:Open your Google Sheets spreadsheet. Click theFilemenu at the top and selectSettingsfrom the list.

Step 2:Switch to theCalculationtab and use thedrop-down menuunder Recalculation to selectOn change.

Step 3:Use the drop-down menu under theIterative calculationand selectOff. Then, click theSave settingsbutton.

Refresh your spreadsheet after updating the calculation settings and check if the issue remains.

Fix 2: Check the Cells That the Formula Is Referencing

Your Google Sheets formulas may stop working if there are issues with the cell references in your formula. This can happen if the cells your formula is referencing are invalid, moved, or deleted.

Open your Google Sheets spreadsheet and select the cell formula that is not working or updating. Google Sheets will highlight all the precedents for the formula. Examine those cells and correct them if necessary. Repeat this for all the formulas that are not working.

Fix 3: Disable Show Formulas

Are your Google Sheets formulas appearing as text? If so, you may have accidentally enabled the show formulas option in Google Sheets through the view menu or a keyboard shortcut.

Open your Google Sheets spreadsheet. Click theViewmenu at the top, go toShow, and selectFormulaefrom the sub-menu. Alternatively, press theCtrl + `keyboard shortcut to show or hide formulas quickly.

Fix 4: Restore an Earlier Version or Copy Spreadsheet Data to a New File

If your Google Sheets formulas are still not working or updating, the spreadsheet may be corrupted. In that case, your best option is to restore an earlier spreadsheet version.

Step 1:Open your Google Sheets spreadsheet. Click theFilemenu at the top, go toVersion history>See version history.

Step 2:In the Version history panel on your right, hover your mouse over the version you want to restore. Click thethree-dot menu iconand selectRestore this version.

If there are no older spreadsheet versions available, trycopying your spreadsheet data to a new fileto see if that fixes the problem.

Step 1:Open your spreadsheet. PressCtrl + A, followed byCtrl + C, to copy everything.

Step 2:Click theFilemenu at the top, go toNew, and selectSpreadsheet.

Step 3:In your new spreadsheet, click theEditmenu and selectPaste.

After transferring your data to a new spreadsheet, your formulas should work as expected.

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Last updated on 08 April, 2024

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