Forum Discussion
Excel selects wrong cell
Hello,
I am here to report on what seems to be a common issue...
After working for a few minutes in excel, when I go to click on a cell, the wrong cell actually gets selected, and it is usually several cells above or below the cell my mouse is hovering over.
I sometimes have success in saving, closing and reopening the book, but not always.
Excel Office 365 version, updated on schedule, as always.
66 Replies
yeah...
I've given up quite a while ago. I tried so many things. Nothing seems to work without error.
Finally I added this macro in my Personal Macro Workbook, gave it a convenient shortkey..
I need to use it a few times a week, depending on the intensity of my Excel use.Sub FocusCorrectCell()
Application.ScreenUpdating = False
Set myCell = ActiveCell
ActiveSheet.Cells(1, 1).Select
myCell.Select
Application.ScreenUpdating = TrueEnd Sub
Thanks for sharing this, GuyF25. That might be a great help for people. They can also edit the macro for their personal requirements if necessary.
For me, I'm continuing my tests having seemingly found the issue not occurring if I disable the touchpad. Not a convenient solution for me, but can be helpful if I really want to avoid the error (I just have to work off touchpad only, and unplug mouse, or use mouse only, with touchpad disabled).
I'm sending my finding to the usually useless Feedback Hub, in case it sparks any interest from these profiteering, blasé cretins.
In the last couple of days, disabling the touchpad is possibly eradicating the issue. If this is correct, it doesn't solve my problem, as I use a trackball mouse in conjunction with the laptop touchpad, for accessibility/convenience reasons. However, it might mean that temporarily unplugging my mouse and using only the touchpad, for certain Excel files, is a workaround of sorts.
I'm not sure if this will be the case for other users. I'm also not sure if any specific touchpad setting might be correlated; I will test further.
I've already had my laptop drivers updated many times, so I don't think that's a cure.
If the above has merit, I'm unsure yet whether the issue only manifests after both touchpad and mouse have been used while in a worksheet.
The issue persists across various versions of Microsoft 365. While Microsoft has yet to provide an official fix, several community members have shared potential workarounds that might help alleviate the problem.
Common Workarounds Suggested by Users...
1. Disable Hardware Graphics Acceleration
Some users have found that turning off hardware graphics acceleration in Excel can resolve the issue. To do this:- Go to File > Options > Advanced.
- Scroll down to the Display section.
- Check the box for Disable hardware graphics acceleration.
- Click OK to apply the changes.
This adjustment can help if the problem is related to display scaling or graphics driver glitches.
2. Adjust Zoom Level
Changing the zoom level in Excel has been reported to temporarily fix the issue:- Set the zoom to 100%.
- If the problem persists, try adjusting the zoom to different levels and observe if it affects the behavior.
Some users have noted that using a zoom level other than 100% can cause the selection issue to occur.
3. Switch to a Different Worksheet
Changing to another worksheet and then returning to the original one can sometimes reset the selection behavior.- Click on a different worksheet tab.
- Then, switch back to the original worksheet.
This method has provided a temporary workaround for some users.
4. Use the Trackpad Instead of the Mouse
On Windows, some users have found that using the laptop's trackpad instead of an external mouse can bypass the issue.- Try navigating and selecting cells using the trackpad to see if the problem persists.
This approach may be effective as the issue seems to be more prevalent with external mice.
Additional Observations
- Multiple Screens and Freeze Panes: Using multiple monitors or the Freeze Panes feature in Excel has been associated with the issue. Some users have reported that the problem occurs more frequently under these conditions.
- Excel Window Resizing: Changing the size of the Excel window can sometimes trigger the selection issue. Excel may use outdated window dimensions to calculate pointer positions, leading to misalignment.
- Touchscreen Devices: On devices with touchscreens, disabling the touchscreen functionality has helped some users resolve the issue. This can be done through the Device Manager in Windows.
Summary
While these workarounds have provided temporary relief for some users, the underlying issue remains unresolved. Additionally, keeping Excel and your system drivers up to date may help mitigate the issue.
To clarify, I'm just a simple user like everyone else in this forum, just trying to offer help for self-help. If it's accepted, I'm happy, and if not, that's fine too.
But I still hope this helps at least a little bit 🙂.
On my side we've tried almost all the above options but to no avail. However, I note the mention of disabling touchpad, and this was something I started experimenting with yesterday and which I will be checking further. It would be a problem for me if this were a solution, as I use the touchpad and a trackball mouse, for accessibility and convenience reasons. But if it solved it, it could be useful when working on certain worksheets where it's most essential to avoid the error (i.e. where it's crucial I don't miss Excel damaging my data without my realising it).
People have indeed found various ways to reset the issue, but these are of course a massive inconvenience to have to keep actioning, repeatedly. My solution of fast up-down touchpad scroll is perhaps the best I've found, but it's still galling.
Microsoft need to respect paying customers, their quality of life, and their mental health, and fix the problem. It's very much changed how I feel about my work, and for that, I have to say I despise Microsoft.From what you’ve described, the touchpad seems to be a critical variable—disabling it might temporarily stop the misalignment, but at a huge cost to accessibility and workflow. The fast up-down scroll trick is clever as a workaround, but I get why it feels galling—no one should have to work around a core function just to avoid silent data corruption.
This isn’t just an inconvenience—it’s impacting your trust in the software and your sense of control over your work.
If it helps, here are some nuanced strategies people have tried when they can’t disable the touchpad entirely:
Use a separate dedicated device for high-risk worksheets – For certain files where accuracy is critical, some users temporarily switch to a different PC or laptop without a touchpad, so the issue doesn’t even have a chance to trigger.
Virtual machine / sandbox environment – Running Excel in a VM or remote desktop session can sometimes isolate input issues, because the VM can ignore the touchpad input entirely.
Macro or monitoring workaround – Some advanced users set up a simple VBA script that warns or locks the worksheet if unexpected cell selections occur. It’s not perfect, but it can prevent silent mistakes.
High DPI / display scaling adjustments – Oddly enough, some users find toggling Windows display scaling between 100%, 125%, or 150% can influence how Excel interprets pointer locations, even with touchpads.
The core truth is what you’re expressing: until Microsoft directly fixes this, any “solution” is a compromise between convenience and safety.
I've run into this too — super frustrating! Sometimes it's caused by display scaling issues or a glitch with the graphics driver. Try disabling hardware graphics acceleration in Excel (File > Options > Advanced > Display). That fixed it for me!
Microsoft sent me replies saying questions moved to another forum. From there, questions locked/closed. When I try to create a new one, it fails, with an unexplained problem.
What an absolutely disgusting company.
Having same problem in Excel365, windows 11. Hopeful a solution will be posted.
We've been waiting 2.5 years, and Microsoft have used various tactics to damp down our queries. Most recently, one of them replied to me to say the case has been moved to another site, but I find the URL just goes to a Q&A homepage. Other tickets there for the same issue there have been closed by Microsoft, and yesterday I was unable to even create a new ticket.
This is what happens when a company becomes consumed by greed. It's despicable.
Finally I have found a place discussing the issue. I get in in excel on different Laptops same file or different file on same laptop and different files on different laptops. Every combination and still the issue. Microsoft 365 the only common denominator.
That's right, same for me. Win 10, Win 11, various builds, different monitor configs, new worksheets, old worksheets...and four different laptops with all the cost and time involved. Without question the most dusgusting customer support fail I've experienced in many years in tech. A shameful example of profiteering within a monopoly; take the custom, then run.
How do I make an official report to Microsoft?
Somewhere in this thread or another one, there's a link they suggested for raising a support case. They will, unfortunately, just put you in an endless loop of reinstalling, repairing etc., which in my experience (and that of others) will not resolve the issue.
We submitted an official complaint to Microsoft, and a support engineer was assigned to our case. After the initial response, which only included basic steps like reinstalling Office, we received no further response. We have already reinstalled Windows and even replaced the laptop, but the issue still persists
Yes, a familar story. They seem to not want to invest in properly investigating and/or resolving, and instead use these delaying tactics, the idea being the user eventually gives up (a friend who works for Three says they do exactly this for internet issues). They have dozens of cases to check, and dozens of users who've already tried the above steps. I don't for a moment believe MS are unable to fix this. But for some reason, they refuse to do so.
Our IT team has also already tried everything possible, including reinstalling Windows and Office, and even providing a new laptop. None of these solutions have worked. They also contacted Microsoft, but Microsoft responded that this is not a known issue.
This problem only occurs in Microsoft 365 and does not appear in previous versions of Excel.
I'm on my 3rd employer-issued laptop (two awful Dell ones, now an even worse HP), they've also tried OS rebuilds, reinstalls etc. Microsoft could fix this, but they choose not to, as they are a corrupt, profiteering organisation, abusing their monopoly in a disgusting manner.
I've seen this back at least to Office 2003. And to mention again, on multiple platforms. As all issues with uncertain reproducibility, determining if it's a regression is extremely hard.
The fun continues.
"Not a known issue"?!?!?!? 😵🤡
I have a new theory. How old is the workbook this happens in? All of my workbooks it happens in are several years old. I've not experienced it in newer workbooks (2 years and younger).
It happens in any file
An outstanding set of observations and at least raised a laugh this side! And seriously, I think you likely have a point, how on earth can the issue continue for this long? A parallel is the notorious jumping cursor (generic, all apps, uses), affecting laptops even to include Chromebooks - for about 20 years and counting! I guess that's an industry cover-up, they must understand it, but the key component is cheap and/or difficult to easily replace. You can't even get laptop manufacturers or Microsoft to admit that one exists, even when showing them posts on their own forums! Despicable.
