Excel file locked for editing by me or another user

01 · Locked for editing by me? Try this first.

Read the name in the message. If it is your name, or the file is not open anywhere you can see, do this:

1. Save your work. Press Ctrl + S in any Excel window that is open.
2. End Excel. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager, select Microsoft Excel, then select End task. Look under both Apps and Background processes.
3. Open the file again. It opens for editing with no “locked” message.

If Excel is not in the list, or the message comes back, go to 02. If the message names a colleague, go to 03.

02 · Close the file on your other devices.

A lock under your own name means a copy is open somewhere else you are signed in.

1. Close the file on every other computer you use. That includes a laptop at home.
2. Close any Excel for the web tab that has it open. The browser counts as another device.
3. Wait a few minutes. The server can hold the lock briefly after the file closes.
4. Open the file again. The lock has cleared when it opens for editing.

03 · Locked by another user? Ask them to close it.

When the message names a colleague, they have the file open. Excel has no button that removes them.

1. Ask them to save and close the file. Then open it again yourself.
2. Only need to read it? Open it read-only from the message. You cannot save over their version.
3. Need to edit now? Select File → Save a Copy, edit the copy, and merge your changes into the original once it is free.

If the file is saved in OneDrive or SharePoint, you can both edit at once. Open it in Excel for Microsoft 365 or Excel for the web. The FAQ below lists what stops that working.

04 · Check in a checked-out file.

Some SharePoint libraries make people check a file out before they edit it. While it is checked out, nobody else can edit it.

1. Open the library in your browser. Point at the file name to see who has it checked out.
2. Select the file. Then select the More menu (…) above the Documents list and choose Check in.
3. Select OK. The checkout icon disappears and the file can be edited again.

If someone else has it checked out, ask them to do these steps. A site owner or admin can check it in for them: SharePoint warns that the file is checked out to another person, and OK overrides it. Choose Discard check out instead of Check in only if you want to throw away the changes made since checkout.

05 · Remove an owner file left on a shared drive.

This applies to a workbook on a shared network drive, not SharePoint or OneDrive. While someone has a workbook open, Excel keeps a small hidden owner file beside it, named ~$ followed by the workbook name. If that file is left behind, for example after the server restarts, Excel can report a lock that nobody holds.

1. Check that nobody has the workbook open. Ask the team.
2. Copy the workbook somewhere safe. That is your backup.
3. Open the shared folder in File Explorer. Select View → Show → Hidden items.
4. Delete the file that starts with ~$ and has your workbook’s name. Delete that file only.
5. Open the workbook. It opens for editing.

Never delete the workbook itself. If Windows says the owner file is in use, something still has the workbook open. Stop and ask your IT contact.

06 · PERSONAL.XLSB is locked for editing.

PERSONAL.XLSB is your Personal Macro Workbook. It is a hidden workbook that Excel opens every time it starts, so this message can appear as soon as Excel opens, even though you never opened that file. It means something else already has it open, usually a second copy of Excel that is still running, or the File Explorer preview pane.

1. Save your work and close Excel.
2. End every copy of Excel. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager, then select each Microsoft Excel and select End task. Look under both Apps and Background processes.
3. Turn off the preview pane. In File Explorer, select View → Show → Preview pane so it is no longer ticked.
4. Open Excel from the Start menu. It opens with no message.

Do not delete PERSONAL.XLSB to make the message stop. It holds the macros you have saved. If the message keeps coming back, ask your IT person to look at it.

07 · Or let KoalaFix do it.

KoalaFix clears a stuck Excel process on your PC after you approve it, which can lose unsaved changes. It does not clear those other locks: a colleague’s lock, a SharePoint or OneDrive checkout, or an owner file left behind on a shared drive.

Start free trial → See how it works

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08 · Still stuck? It may not be your PC.

A SharePoint or OneDrive lock that survives closing the file everywhere and waiting is held on the server. It usually expires by itself. If it does not, your Microsoft 365 admin can look at it, and may need to contact Microsoft support. A shared drive that will not let you delete the owner file needs the person who looks after that server.

09 · FAQ.

Why does Excel show a name I do not recognise?

Excel reads the name from the owner file next to the workbook. If that file was left behind, for example after a server restart, Excel shows the name saved in it, not the person who has the workbook open now. On a shared drive, follow section 05. On SharePoint, check who has the file checked out in section 04.

Why can’t two of us edit the same workbook at once?

Both of you need the file in OneDrive or a SharePoint Online library, saved as .xlsx, .xlsm or .xlsb, and open in Excel for Microsoft 365 or Excel for the web. One person on Excel 2016, 2019 or 2021 LTSC, or a file on a network drive, Dropbox or Google Drive, brings the lock back for everyone.

Why does Excel say the file is locked for editing by me when it is not open?

A copy of Excel is usually still running in the background on your PC, or the file is open on another device you are signed in to, such as a laptop at home or an Excel for the web tab. End Excel in Task Manager, close the file everywhere and wait a few minutes for the lock to clear.

10 · Related fixes.

• Can't find a file in SharePoint or OneDrive
• OneDrive not syncing
• Outlook keeps asking for a password

11 · What KoalaFix can handle.

See the full capability map for what KoalaFix fixes automatically, what asks for approval, and what still needs a person.

12 · Sources.

The steps in this guide follow these pages. Menus can move when Microsoft updates its apps, so check them if a step looks different.

• Excel file is locked for editing (Microsoft Support)
• Check out or check in files in a document library (Microsoft Support)
• Create and save all your macros in a single workbook (Microsoft Support)
• PERSONAL.XLSB is locked for editing (Microsoft Q&A)