Notes in Excel

David Lambert 

To re-enable notes in Excel, follow these steps:

1. Enable the "Review" Tab:
• Ensure the "Review" tab is visible in your Excel ribbon. If it's not, right-click on the ribbon, select "Customize the Ribbon," and ensure that the "Review" tab is checked.
2. Re-enable Notes:
• Go to the "Review" tab.
• Look for the "Notes" group. You should see options like "New Note," "Edit Note," etc.
• If the "Notes" group is not visible, it might be hidden due to a customized ribbon setup. You can reset the ribbon to its default settings by going to "File" > "Options" > "Customize Ribbon" and then clicking the "Reset" button.
3. Using Notes:
• To add a new note, select a cell and click "New Note" in the "Notes" group under the "Review" tab.
• To edit an existing note, click on the cell with the note and select "Edit Note" from the same group.
4. Show/Hide Notes:
• If your notes are hidden, you can show them by clicking "Show All Notes" in the "Notes" group under the "Review" tab.
• To hide notes, you can use "Hide All Notes" from the same group.

If the above steps don't resolve the issue, you might be dealing with comments instead of notes, as Excel differentiates between the two. In newer versions of Excel, comments are threaded and notes are traditional comments from older versions.

For Comments (Excel 2019 and later):

1. Enable Comments:
• Go to the "Review" tab.
• Look for the "Comments" group. You should see options like "New Comment," "Show Comments," etc.
2. Using Comments:
• To add a new comment, select a cell and click "New Comment" in the "Comments" group under the "Review" tab.
• To edit an existing comment, click on the cell with the comment and select "Edit Comment" from the same group.

By following these steps, you should be able to re-enable and use notes (or comments) in Excel as needed. The text and steps were edited with the help of AI.

My answers are voluntary and without guarantee!

Hope this will help you.

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David Lambert 

What do you mean under disabled notes, you don't see New Note on ribbon, or it's greyed out, or you can't see existing notes?

Just in case, on modern Excel notes are under Review -> Notes -> drop-down with options. Under Insert tab are only Comments.