Workbook Audit
54 checks for what Excel won’t warn you about, from a #REF! to your name in the file’s details.
- FreeUnlimited scans, no account.
- PrivateThe scan runs in your browser. The file never leaves it.
- ProOne-click fixes, reports, saved scans, batch audit, and the full Workbook Compare with what each edit broke, $9 a month. What Pro adds → (opens in a new tab)
What a scan shows you
The results count what each check found, worst first. Open a finding for the cells it’s in, why it matters and how to fix it in Excel.
Click an address and the sheet opens on that cell, boxed, with its formula above it. Free shows the cells on 28 of the checks and a count on the other 26; Pro lists every one.
1
Error
3 issues
3
Warnings
7 issues
1
Note
1 issue
49
Passed
of 54 checks
ErrorBroken formula references3Formulas
#REF! error, 3 occurrences in ‘Sales’ Show in sheet
| A | B | C | D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Region | Jan | Feb | Mar |
| 2 | North | 18,200 | 17,950 | 19,400 |
| 3 | South | 12,600 | 13,100 | 12,850 |
| 4 | West | 9,850 | 10,200 | #REF! |
| 5 | Total | 40,650 | 41,250 | #REF! |
Why it matters
A #REF! or #NAME? error spreads to every formula that reads the cell, so a total can be wrong or blank without anyone noticing where it started.
How to fix
Open the cell and rebuild the reference: #REF! means a row, column or sheet it pointed at was deleted, and #NAME? means a misspelled function or range name.
WarningFormulas fed by an error1Formulas
WarningText that looks numeric4Data hygiene
WarningExternal links2External and links
NoteVolatile functions1Performance
Passed49 checks found nothing
What Workbook Audit checks
All 54 checks run on every file you drop in, grouped as the results group them.
Formulas16 checks
#DIV/0!Broken formula references · Error values in cells · Circular references · Typed values among formulas · Formulas that differ from their neighbours · Formulas fed by an error · Totals that count a subtotal twice · Totals that don't add up · Totals that stop short of the numbers · Lookups returning #N/A · Approximate-match lookups to review · Functions older Excel versions can't calculate · Old and language-dependent functions · References across a run of sheets · Numbers typed into formulas · Complex formulas
Why it matters
Formulas already returning an error or reading their own result, numbers typed over copied formulas, lookups stuck on #N/A, approximate matches that can return the wrong row, functions that show #NAME? in Excel 2016, rates typed into formulas instead of a labelled cell, formulas too long or too nested to check by eye, and totals that count a subtotal twice, miss rows added just above them, or were saved without recalculating.
Settings4 checks
ManualManual calculation · Saved formula results may be out of date · Iterative calculation · 1904 date system
Why it matters
A workbook left on manual calculation shows totals that never updated. Iterative calculation hides a circular reference instead of warning about it. A file saved by a script often has no formula results in it, which previews and imports show as blanks.
Structure9 checks
HiddenVery hidden sheets · Hidden sheets, rows & columns · Values hidden by a number format · Text coloured to match its background · Merged cells · Protected sheets and workbook · Unlocked or hidden formulas on protected sheets · Ctrl+Shift+Enter array formulas · Macros
Why it matters
Sheets, rows and columns a reviewer won't see, including very hidden sheets that Excel's Unhide list leaves out, and values made invisible with white text or a ;;; number format. Merged cells, protection (and formulas it leaves unlocked or hides), old array formulas and macros are listed too.
Names3 checks
#REF!Names that refer to #REF! · Unused names · Hidden names
Why it matters
Named ranges pointing at cells that were deleted, names nothing uses any more, and names hidden from Name Manager.
External and links2 checks
[Q3.xlsx]External links · Data fetched from outside the file
Why it matters
Links to other workbooks that break when a file moves or gets renamed, and queries that pull data in from outside the file.
Privacy4 checks
C:\UsersCard, Social Security or bank account numbers · Links to personal folders or network shares · Email addresses and phone numbers · Names and paths in the file's details
Why it matters
Your name, your company and folders on your own computer, saved in the file where whoever you send it to can read them, and other people's details typed into the cells: card numbers, Social Security numbers, bank account numbers, email addresses and phone numbers.
Performance6 checks
NOW()Volatile functions · Very large file · Large file · Old .xls format · Conditional formatting to clean up · Whole-column references in heavy formulas
Why it matters
Why a file is slow or heavy: NOW() and INDIRECT() recalculating on every edit, years of piled-up conditional formatting, whole-column references inside SUMPRODUCT, the sheets that take up the space.
Data hygiene10 checks
'00123Text that looks numeric · Text mixed into a column of numbers · Dates stored as text · Day-first and month-first dates mixed · Values that break the cell's data validation · Extra spaces where lookups and SUMIFs match · Extra spaces splitting a value in two · Duplicate rows · Blank rows or columns inside a list · Codes and long numbers losing digits
Why it matters
Numbers stored as text, which SUM leaves out and lookups miss, card numbers or codes stored as numbers, which have already lost digits or leading zeros, dates typed as text or with day and month swapped, values a cell's own dropdown or limits don't allow (pasted in, or there before the rule), and in a list: rows entered twice, stray spaces that turn one value into two or break a lookup, notes like TBD among the numbers, and blank rows or columns that cut it short.
Audit profiles Pro
A profile puts the checks for one job first. Every check still runs, and an Error from any of them is listed whatever the profile, so picking one never hides something that’s wrong now. The report, the charts and saved scans keep every finding.
Pre-send check
Before a file goes to a client or outside the team: what it gives away and what won't work on their computer.
13 checks, in order
- Card, Social Security or bank account numbers
- Email addresses and phone numbers
- Links to personal folders or network shares
- Names and paths in the file's details
- External links
- Data fetched from outside the file
- Very hidden sheets
- Hidden sheets, rows & columns
- Values hidden by a number format
- Text coloured to match its background
- Macros
- Functions older Excel versions can't calculate
- Old and language-dependent functions
Inherited-file triage
A workbook someone handed over: what's broken, what's hidden, what it reaches outside itself for and which settings will surprise you.
20 checks, in order
- Broken formula references
- Error values in cells
- Names that refer to #REF!
- Formulas fed by an error
- Circular references
- Typed values among formulas
- External links
- Data fetched from outside the file
- Very hidden sheets
- Hidden sheets, rows & columns
- Values hidden by a number format
- Text coloured to match its background
- Hidden names
- Protected sheets and workbook
- Unlocked or hidden formulas on protected sheets
- Manual calculation
- Iterative calculation
- Saved formula results may be out of date
- 1904 date system
- Macros
Returned file review
A file you sent out that's come back from a colleague or client: formulas typed over or out of step with their neighbours, numbers keyed into formulas, links and data from outside the file, hidden sheets, and what the file now says about who had it.
11 checks, in order
- Typed values among formulas
- Formulas that differ from their neighbours
- Numbers typed into formulas
- External links
- Data fetched from outside the file
- Very hidden sheets
- Hidden sheets, rows & columns
- Names that refer to #REF!
- Values that break the cell's data validation
- Links to personal folders or network shares
- Names and paths in the file's details
Financial model review
Before you trust a model's numbers: typed-in figures, formulas that break pattern, and totals that miss or double count.
8 checks, in order
- Typed values among formulas
- Totals that count a subtotal twice
- Totals that don't add up
- Totals that stop short of the numbers
- Formulas that differ from their neighbours
- Numbers typed into formulas
- Circular references
- Approximate-match lookups to review
Why is it slow
A workbook that takes seconds to recalculate or open: what makes Excel do more work than it needs to.
5 checks, in order
- Volatile functions
- Whole-column references in heavy formulas
- Conditional formatting to clean up
- Very large file
- Large file
Questions
Privacy, file sizes, file types, fixes, and what the results mean.
Is my file uploaded anywhere?
No. The scan runs in your browser, in a background worker, and the file never leaves your device. Fixes, the .xlsx and PDF reports and the marked copy are made the same way. If you have Pro and save a scan, your account keeps the name you give it, SHA-256 fingerprints of the file and of its file name, the date, the sheet names, and each finding's check, count and cell address. If you mark a finding reviewed, your account keeps your note as you typed it, a fingerprint of the file and of its file name (so the mark finds the file again after it changes), and that finding's check and cell addresses. If you change the check thresholds, your account keeps the numbers you set, and a scan you save keeps them too. Nothing from inside the cells is saved, and you can delete saved scans, reviews and thresholds from your account page.
How big a file can it scan?
20MB free, 50MB with Pro. A big file shows which check is running and can be cancelled. If your browser runs out of memory on a large file, the page says so: splitting the workbook by sheet usually gets it through. With Pro you can also drop up to 50 workbooks at once, 200MB in all, and they're scanned one after another so only one is in memory at a time.
Does scanning change my file?
No, a scan only reads it. Pro's fixes write a new copy for you to download, and that copy is scanned again, so you see what each fix changed and whether anything new turned up. With Pro you can also open the original and the fixed copy side by side in the Workbook Compare, to see every cell the fix touched.
Which problems does it leave for me to fix?
Anything that needs a decision about the numbers: a #REF! left by a deleted row, a lookup returning #N/A, a formula that adds the wrong range. The audit takes you to the cell and says how to fix it in Excel. The change is yours.
Can I change when a check flags something?
With Pro, yes, for the checks that count from a number: how long (200 characters), how deeply nested (5 functions) or how many references (10) make a formula complex, how many conditional formatting rules a sheet can have (25), the sizes that make a file large (10MB) or very large (25MB), how far the circular reference check follows formula links, and numbers the hardcoded-number check should leave alone. They're saved to your account and used on every scan until you reset them.
Does it work with .xls and .xlsm files?
Scanning reads .xlsx, .xlsm and legacy .xls. A .xls gets every check that can be answered from its cells; the ones that need parts only .xlsx files have (calculation settings, unused and hidden names, data connections, personal paths and metadata, conditional formatting, macros) are listed as not checked, never as passed. So are links to other workbooks and sheet protection when the scan finds none, since a .xls can hold them where the scan can't see. One-click fixes need .xlsx or .xlsm, because Excel itself converts a .xls before editing it safely: save the file as .xlsx in Excel and scan it again, which takes about thirty seconds. Removing macros from a .xlsm saves it as .xlsx.
What do Not run and Skipped mean?
Each check runs on its own, with a 20-second limit. A check that fails on your file is listed as Not run, and one that runs out of time before finding anything as Skipped. Neither counts as a pass, and the other checks still report.