How to Change Read-Only Mode in Excel

To change read-only mode in Excel, first look at the message under the ribbon, because each kind of read-only has its own switch. If the workbook was set to always open read-only, select Edit Anyway, go to File > Info > Protect Workbook, select Always Open Read-Only to turn it off, then save and close the file. For a yellow Protected View bar, select Enable Editing. If the file itself is marked read-only in Windows, right-click it, choose Properties, clear Read-only, and select OK.

Applies to: Excel for Microsoft 365, Excel 2024, 2021, 2019 and 2016 on Windows, plus Excel for Mac where noted. Checked against Microsoft Support on October 7, 2026.

Why an Excel workbook opens as read-only

“Read-only” means you can open and look at the workbook, but Excel won’t let you save changes to that file. It is not one single setting. Excel and Windows have several separate features that all end up with the same result, and turning off one of them does nothing to the others. Here are the common causes, what you usually see, and where to fix each one:

What you see	Likely cause	Where to fix it
A message asking you to open the file read-only, with an Edit Anyway option	The author set the workbook to always open read-only	Turn off Always Open Read-Only
A “Marked as Final” message at the top of the workbook	The author marked the workbook as final	Remove Mark as Final
A yellow or red bar that says Protected View	The file came from the internet, an email attachment or another unsafe location	Exit Protected View
Read-only in the title bar, and no message bar at all	The file’s Read-only attribute is set in Windows, or the file is in use	Clear the Read-only attribute, or fix a locked file
A message that the file is locked for editing or in use	Another person, another device or a crashed session has the file open	Fix “locked for editing”
You can open the file, but some cells or sheets refuse changes	Sheet or workbook structure protection (not read-only)	Unprotect a sheet or workbook
Every workbook opens read-only, and Excel mentions an unlicensed product	Microsoft 365 or Office isn’t activated	Troubleshooting below

If you only need your own editable version and don’t need to change the original, you can also save a copy with File > Save As in a folder where you’re allowed to save. That leaves the original untouched.

Turn off Always Open Read-Only in Excel for Windows

This is the setting most people mean when they ask how to change read-only mode. The workbook’s author turns it on to suggest that people read the file without changing it. Microsoft notes that only the author can turn it off, and you can’t turn it off without selecting Edit Anyway first or while someone else has the file open.

1. Open the workbook. When Excel shows the read-only message, select Edit Anyway. The workbook switches to editing, but the setting is still saved in the file.
2. Select the File tab, then select Info. The Info page shows the workbook’s protection status.
3. Select Protect Workbook. A list of protection options opens.
4. Select Always Open Read-Only. This clears the setting, so the workbook no longer asks to open read-only.
5. Save the workbook and close it. The next time you open it, it should open ready for editing, without the read-only message.

If Always Open Read-Only isn’t selected in that list, this setting isn’t the cause. Check the other sections below. Microsoft’s own steps are on its Remove read only from a file page.

Remove Mark as Final

Mark as Final is a courtesy label, not a lock. It tells people the workbook is finished and makes it read-only until someone chooses to edit it.

1. Open the workbook. A “Marked as Final” message appears at the top.
2. Select Edit Anyway on that message. Microsoft says this removes the read-only status, and you can start typing right away.
3. Save the workbook so the change is kept.

If you’re the author and want to set or clear the label yourself, it’s under File > Info > Protect Workbook > Mark as Final. Because anyone can select Edit Anyway, don’t rely on Mark as Final to stop changes.

Exit Protected View

Protected View is a safety feature, not an error. Excel opens a file this way when it came from the internet, arrived as an Outlook attachment from a sender your computer treats as unsafe, sits in an unsafe location such as a temporary internet folder, is caught by File Block, fails Excel’s file validation check, or comes from someone else’s OneDrive. You can read the workbook, but editing is switched off until you decide you trust it.

1. Look at the color of the bar under the ribbon.
2. For a yellow bar, select Enable Editing if you trust where the file came from. The bar disappears and you can edit.
3. For a red bar, Excel found a possible problem with the file. You can select File > Edit Anyway, but only if you’re sure the file is safe. Microsoft recommends closing and deleting a file that looks suspicious.

Once you enable editing, Excel treats that file as a trusted document, so it won’t open in Protected View again.

You can change which files open in Protected View at File > Options > Trust Center > Trust Center Settings > Protected View. The options cover files from the internet, files in potentially unsafe locations, Outlook attachments, and (in Excel only) untrusted text-based files like .csv and database files. Turning these off removes a layer of protection against harmful files, so Microsoft suggests checking with your administrator first. For most people, selecting Enable Editing one file at a time is the better choice. See Microsoft’s What is Protected View? for details.

Clear the Read-only attribute in Windows

Windows can mark the file itself as read-only, outside Excel. This often happens with files copied from somewhere else. When the attribute is set, Excel opens the workbook read-only every time, and no setting inside Excel changes that.

1. Close the workbook in Excel.
2. In File Explorer, find the file and right-click it.
3. Select Properties. The file’s Properties window opens.
4. Clear the Read-only check box.
5. Select OK, then open the workbook again in Excel. It should now open for editing.

Only clear this box on files you own or are allowed to change. If the box won’t stay cleared, or Windows says you need permission, your account may not have rights to change files in that folder (common on work networks). Ask the folder’s owner or your IT team, or save a copy somewhere you can write to.

If you’re comfortable with Command Prompt, the attrib command does the same job: attrib -r followed by the file name clears the Read-only attribute, as described in Microsoft’s attrib command reference.

Open a workbook that recommends read-only or asks for a password

Two other author settings show a prompt when the file opens:

• Read-only recommended. Excel asks whether you want to open the file read-only. This is only a suggestion. Choose to open it normally if you need to edit. Microsoft points out that this prompt “will not prevent changes” to the workbook.
• Password to modify. Excel asks for a password before you can edit. Without the password, you can’t save changes to the original. If Excel lets you open it read-only and you need your own working version, use File > Save As to save a copy under a new name. For the original file, ask the person who set the password.

To stop the read-only recommendation on a workbook you created, save it again with that option cleared. In Excel for Mac, it’s the Read-only recommended check box under File > Passwords. On Windows, the author can save the workbook again without the recommendation.

A password to open is a different feature. Excel encrypts the workbook, and you need that password to see anything at all. If you set the password and know it, you can remove it at File > Info > Protect Workbook > Encrypt with Password by deleting the password and selecting OK. Our guide on removing a password from an Excel file walks through it. Microsoft can’t recover a forgotten password, and password-cracking tools or upload-and-unlock websites are not a safe or appropriate route for files that aren’t yours. Contact the file’s owner instead.

Fix “locked for editing” and files in use

If Excel says the workbook is locked for editing or already in use, someone (possibly you) still has it open. Excel lets you open it read-only, but not edit it, until the lock is released.

• You opened it somewhere else. Close the file on every device, wait a few minutes for the server to release the lock, and open it again. If Excel crashed earlier, restarting your computer clears a lock left behind by that session.
• Another person has it open. Wait until they close it, ask them to close it, or open it read-only for now. In a shared file, you can select Viewing, then Request more access, and choose Ask to edit. The owner gets an email to approve or decline.
• Someone is using a version without co-authoring. Co-authoring lets several people edit at once, but it needs Excel for Microsoft 365 or Excel for the web. Microsoft notes that Excel 2016, 2019 and 2021 LTSC don’t support it, and one person using such a version can lock the file for everyone.
• The file is stored in the wrong place for co-authoring. Co-authoring works for files in OneDrive, OneDrive for Business or SharePoint, not on network shares or other cloud services. Move the file there if several people need to edit together.
• The file uses an older format or blocking features. Save it as .xlsx, .xlsm or .xlsb with File > Save As > Browse > Save as type. Turn off the legacy Shared Workbook feature, and remember that password encryption also blocks co-authoring.
• OneDrive is out of date or paused. On Windows, update the OneDrive sync app and make sure syncing isn’t paused.

For shared files, make sure the person who shared it gave you edit rather than view access. Our guide on how to share an Excel sheet explains how those permissions are set. Microsoft’s full checklist is on Excel file is locked for editing.

Unprotect a sheet or the workbook structure

Sometimes a workbook isn’t read-only at all. You can open and save it, but certain cells, sheets or sheet tabs won’t change. That’s sheet or workbook protection, which is separate from read-only mode.

• Sheet protection locks cells on one worksheet. To remove it, go to the sheet, then select Review > Unprotect Sheet (in the Changes group), or File > Info > Protect > Unprotect Sheet. Enter the password if asked and select OK.
• Workbook structure protection stops you adding, deleting, renaming, moving, copying, hiding or unhiding sheets. To remove it, select Review > Protect Workbook, enter the password if asked, and select OK. When it’s on, the Protect Workbook button is highlighted.

Microsoft states that worksheet protection isn’t meant as a security feature, and it can’t retrieve a forgotten sheet password. If a colleague protected the sheet, ask them to unprotect it or to share the password.

Turn off read-only in Excel for Mac

On a Mac, the read-only switch is in the File menu rather than the Info page.

1. Open the workbook in Excel for Mac.
2. Open the File menu. If Always Open Read-Only has a check mark, select it to remove the check mark.
3. To check for a read-only recommendation, select File > Passwords. In the File Passwords dialog box, clear Read-only recommended and select OK.
4. Save and close the workbook, then open it again to confirm it opens for editing.

Microsoft notes that on a shared workbook, anyone with write access can clear this read-only status, so it’s a convenience rather than real protection. If the file itself is locked in the Finder, unlock it there first. See Set or clear read-only status in Excel for Mac.

How to check that read-only is off

• Excel no longer shows a read-only label or a message bar under the ribbon when the file opens.
• You can type in a cell and save the workbook without being asked to choose a new file name.
• After closing and reopening, the workbook still opens for editing. If the read-only state comes back, a second cause is still active, so work through the table at the top again.

To make a workbook read-only again later, turn the same setting back on: Always Open Read-Only or Mark as Final under File > Info > Protect Workbook, or the Read-only check box in the file’s Properties.

Troubleshooting when Excel stays read-only

• Every workbook opens read-only. Check whether Excel shows an Unlicensed Product message or an activation error. When Microsoft 365 apps aren’t activated or the license has ended, they run in reduced functionality mode, where you can only view and print documents. Sign in with the account that has your subscription to reactivate. Connecting to the internet also helps if the computer has been offline for more than 30 days.
• Files saved in OneDrive won’t save. Your OneDrive storage may be full. Select the OneDrive icon in the notification area and choose Manage storage to check your space, then free some up.
• Antivirus opens files read-only. Some antivirus programs open Office files read-only to protect you. Check your antivirus settings or ask your IT team.
• Protect Workbook options are missing or greyed out. You may still be in read-only or Protected View. Select Edit Anyway or Enable Editing first. On work or school computers, an administrator can also control Protected View and other Trust Center settings.
• You don’t have permission. On shared drives, SharePoint or files shared with you, only the owner or an administrator can give you edit access. Ask for edit permission rather than trying to work around it.
• Nothing else works. Microsoft suggests restarting your computer, installing Office updates, running an Online Repair of Office, and checking your internet connection. Its Why did my file open read-only? page lists these steps.

Frequently asked questions

Why does my Excel file open as read-only when I’m the owner?

Ownership doesn’t switch off read-only settings. Check for Always Open Read-Only under File > Info > Protect Workbook, the Read-only attribute in the file’s Properties in File Explorer, Protected View if you downloaded the file, and an Office activation problem if every file is affected.

Is Protected View the same as read-only?

No. Protected View is a security check for files from the internet, email and other risky places. Enable Editing ends it for that file. Read-only settings such as Always Open Read-Only come from the author or Windows, and stay until someone turns them off.

Can I remove read-only without a password?

Often, yes. Always Open Read-Only, Mark as Final, Protected View and the Windows Read-only attribute don’t use passwords. A password to modify, a password to open, or a protected sheet does need the password. Without it, you can save your own copy if you can open the file, or ask the owner.

Why does Excel say I need to save a copy?

Excel can’t save changes back to a file it opened read-only. Saving under a new name with File > Save As creates a separate copy, and the original stays as it was. Fix the cause first if you want to edit the original.

How do I make an Excel file read-only again?

Turn the setting back on: select File > Info > Protect Workbook > Always Open Read-Only, or Mark as Final. For real protection against changes, use a password to modify or share the file with view-only access, because both read-only settings can be turned off by anyone.

Why can’t I edit an Excel file shared with me in OneDrive?

The file may be shared with view access only, or someone with an older version of Excel may have it locked. Select Viewing, then Request more access, and choose Ask to edit to send the owner a request.

Once your workbook opens for editing, save it in a location where you have full access, so the read-only message doesn’t come back the next time you open it.

Related: How to give edit access to an Excel sheet.

Related: How to share an Excel file as a link.

Related: how to enable editing in Word.