Excel Checkboxes aren't working

Hello MarenDOT,

Welcome to the Microsoft Community.

I understand that your Excel checkbox functionality is not working and that checkboxes can be added but never properly checked, which is causing you inconvenience.

Until the issue is resolved, temporarily consider using a checkbox in a form control as a replacement.

Please refer to Form controls - Microsoft Support

Then for this checkbox functionality failure, the exact cause needs to be troubleshot step by step:

Try creating a new workbook and then doing the checkbox test to troubleshoot if it is related to permissions on a specific document, if this is happening to all workbooks it looks like it is an exception in the application. I suggest you try the following in turn:

1. Enable Safe Mode

Launching Microsoft Office apps for Windows in Office Safe Mode ensures that it's safe to use the app if you encounter certain issues. This feature is useful when you need to open a file that cannot be opened in normal mode due to an application crash, or when you need help identifying an external program or extension add-on that may be causing problems at startup.  

This method works for most versions of Office on a Windows PC:  

1. Right-click the Start button (lower-left corner) in Windows and click Run.  

2. In the Run box, type the following command:  

3. For Excel: Type excel /safe, and click OK. 

4. See if checkbox works normally.

2. Repair Office

If Microsoft 365 or an Office application (such as Word or Excel) isn't working properly, you can try to fix it. Try the “Quick Fix” first, if that doesn't work try the older and more thorough “Online Fix”.You may need to restart your computer after you're done.  

For more information, see: Repair an Office application - Microsoft Support

3. Reset Excel

This will reset Excel to its default settings and may fix some formatting issues.  

• First, close all running Office programs.  

• Press the Windows + R key combination to open the Run dialog box.  

• Type regedit and press Enter to open the Registry Editor.  

• In the Registry Editor, go to the following path:   

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Excel

• In the right pane, find and select the item named Data, right-click, and select Delete.  

• Close the Registry editor.  

Disclaimer: Modifying registry or workgroup subkeys is generally intended for power users, administrators, and IT professionals. It can help fix some issues, however, serious problems can occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. So, make sure to follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before modifying it. You can then restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click How to back up and restore the registry in Windows - Microsoft Support to view the article.  

4. Reinstall Office 

If none of the above methods work, try reinstalling Office.  

• Manually uninstall Office - Microsoft Support

• Download, install, or reinstall Microsoft 365, Office 2024, or Office 2021 on a PC or Mac - Microsoft Support

5. Create a local account

If the problem persists, please refer to this link to create a new local account to reconfirm the situation.

Please refer to this link to create a new local account to attempt a fresh install and login, this will generate a new user profile to resolve the issue if it occurs in the current user's environment.

Manage user accounts in Windows - Microsoft Support

I hope this is useful and please feel free to ask any questions or share any result.

Best regards  

Ian - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist 

Good morning Ian,

Thanks for your help. I tried all of the steps I'm able to do (this is a government account and I don't have permissions to conduct a full reinstall), additionally, this is a new computer. None of the options your provided have worked out and the checkboxes still don't work.

Anyone else?

The checkbox feature is relatively new. It requires a current update to Excel and a license type that allows the feature to be used. Some license types have feature restrictions in place by the IT department. My suggestion is to check with them to see whether or not the feature ought to be working for your license and version.

Hello MarenDOT,

Thanks for your reply!

Jim_ Gordon makes a good point, it looks like you're using the government version of Office, I didn't know this before.

This version of the application does receive management from your organization's IT, so you can consider consulting with your IT administrator to confirm and see if it has anything to do with the version of the application or the limitations of your organization's policies.

Also, in my test, the checkbox is available in Excel Web.

Sincere greetings,

Ian - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

Checkbox user, whose checkboxes will not "check" true,

Try these steps:

• Make sure the range is not locked from user edits. Go to Review > Unprotect Sheet; and Review > Allow Edit Ranges.

• Make sure the checkbox is not controlled by a Formula. Go to the checkbox cell > Refer to the Formula Bar. Example: =IF($A$1=1,TRUE,FALSE).

• Review data validation at Data > Data Validation > Clear All.

• Check if you're in Design Mode. Developer > Design Mode.

• Make sure you have read-write access to the file in the File Properties.

• Are you using Desktop Mode or Excel for the Web? This is a new feature that works best on Desktop. Windows 11 may direct you to Web version.

All,

In the comments that follow, please be kind. I am not a developer, only an Excel user.

Thank you.

Ok. I think I´ve got it.

It seems this feature is only available with Office 365.

I´ve installed both, Office 2021 (already installed) and Office 365 (new install), set my personal account on both suites and, like magic, the checkbox appeared again.

I´m not involved with Microsoft 365 Insider program so this shouldn't be a must for you guys.

Let me know if you have the same luck because I lost almost half of my day looking for a solution for this #$%&! including scrolling forums and updating my windows too!