How do you unlock editing in google sheets?

You can't edit or copy the contents of a protected Excel worksheet unless you first unlock the protection. If unlocking the worksheet doesn't require a password, or you know the password, you can easily remove the protection in Excel. If you don't know the password, and you also have permission to unlock the document, you can remove the protection without a password using another spreadsheet application such as Apache OpenOffice or Google Sheets. However, note that these methods only work when the worksheet itself is protected, and will not help if the entire file is password protected.

Unlock Worksheets in Excel

Launch Excel and open the protected worksheet.
Select the "Review" tab, and then click "Unprotect Sheet."
Enter the password, if prompted.

Remove Protection Using OpenOffice

Download and install the free Apache OpenOffice suite (link in Resources).
Click the "OpenOffice Calc" tile on the Start screen, or double-click the "OpenOffice" shortcut on the desktop, and then select "Spreadsheet."
Open the Excel file containing the protected worksheet.
Click the "Tools" menu, select "Protect Document," and then click "Sheet" to unlock the spreadsheet. OpenOffice does not require the password.
Select the "File" menu, click "Save As," and then change the file type to "Excel 97/2000/XP (.xls)." OpenOffice doesn't save files in the newer XLSX file format, but you won't have any problems using the older format in most cases. Avoid overwriting the original file as a precaution.
Enter a new filename and click "Save." Click "Keep Current Format" in the warning box.
Close OpenOffice and open the new file in Excel.

Remove Protection Using Google Sheets

Navigate to the Google Drive website, and then sign in to your Google account (link in Resources).
Click the "Create" button, and then select "Spreadsheet."
Click the "File" menu, and then select "Open."
Select "Upload," click "Select a File From Your Computer," select the Excel file, and then click "Open." Google Sheets opens the worksheet with the protection unlocked.
Click the "File" menu, click "Download As," and then select "Microsoft Excel (.xlsx)."
Follow your browser's prompts to either save the file to your computer or open it in Excel.

If I say that life hasn’t got a lot easier from the day Google Sheets started allowing collaborating with others, then it’d be a big lie. But the pile of features it comes with also included the feature of locking cells. This has made it impossible to adjust or alter the data inside of any cell without the permission of the sheet owner.

We bet you’ve faced some trouble with that as well. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have shown up here to learn how to unlock a Google Sheet. Well, don’t worry! We’re about to show you the easiest way to pull that off.

How to Change the Lock Status of Cells in Google Sheets

Open your file.
Click Data.
Select Protected sheets & ranges.
Choose the range to unlock.
Click the trash can icon.
Click the Remove button.

Our guide continues below with additional information on unlocking Google Sheets ranges and spreadsheets.

Don’t see the lines around your cells? Find out where the gridlines went in Google Sheets so that you can get them back.

How to Unlock Google Sheets: Step by Step

Every single time you see protected Google Sheets, there’s a reason why they’re kept that way. But that doesn’t mean you won’t have to unlock cells at times and slip your numbers in there. Now the question is, how will you unlock worksheets? Well, you can follow these simple steps –

Step – 1: Jumping to Protected Sheets and Ranges

First of all, open a sheet in your Google Drive and click the Data option you’re seeing in the menu bar.After hitting ‘Data’, you’ll see protected sheets and ranges there. Once you click on that one, the Protect sheets and ranges panel will show up on the right side, where you’ll see the list of all the protected ranges or locked cells/ranges.

Step – 2: Remove Protection by Clicking Delete/Trash Can Icon

Pick the range/sheet/cell you want to unlock in the first place. Then click on the trash can icon or delete icon you see right by the side of the ”Enter a description” box and the cell will be protection-free.

So, this is how you can get a protected worksheet unlocked. By the way, just because a Google worksheet and a Microsoft Excel sheet or excel file look kind of the same, don’t try the same unlocking tactic there.

How to Lock Cells and Make Protected Sheets?

Well, we guess you’re done learning the ‘unlock cells in Google Sheets’ part now. But to unlock it, you need to know how to lock or protect the sheet in the first place.

After all, at times, you might have to lock a cell in a way where only selected people can put in their numbers and edit that locked cell. Thankfully, that part too was made convenient in Google Sheets. All you need to do is –

Step 1: Opening the Worksheet

To add cell, range, or sheet protection, first of all, go to your Google Drive and open a sheet. Right-click on one of the specific cells in Google Sheets that you’re planning to lock, and click on the Protect range option.

Once the ‘Protected Sheets and ranges pane shows up, hit on the ‘Add a sheet or range’. And in case you want, you can go for ‘Enter a description’ for the cells you’re about to lock.

Step 2: Setting Permissions

When it comes to the Range option, you’ll be seeing the reference of the selected cell. So, if you need to lock any of certain cells, you’re free to change it here. Then click set permissions.

Step 3: Adding Editors

When you see under the ‘Range editing permissions’, there’ll be two options under ‘Restrict who can edit this range’ where one is ‘only you’ and the other one is ‘Custom’. Pick the second one.

Once you pick that, you’ll get to see the ‘Add editors:’ option where you need to enter emails of the user that you want to have the edit permissions of the locked sheet/cell/range. And then, hit on ‘Done.’ By the way, you can revoke the edit permissions of any user too over the selected cells if you like.

As Google sheets can’t be password protected, this is the best way to keep the document and its data restricted from editing by random users. If you badly need your Google sheets or documents password-protected, then you better use third-party tools for that.

Why Uploaded Excel File Can’t Be Protected?

Well, you’ve read it right. When you’d upload an Excel worksheet on the drive, you’ll find some tools missing for that certain document, and that includes the protection tools as well. But is there any way to get that worksheet protected? Of course, there is!

For that, you’ll have to get the Excel file converted into a Google Sheets file first. Then go for the File menu, where you’ll have to select “Save as Google Sheets” options. Once you’re done with that, protecting the sheets/ranges in that certain file will be easy as pie.

How to Protect Entire Sheets in Google Worksheet?

What if you want to save the entire sheet as protected rather than the cells? Well, that’s possible too. Just follow a simple set of instructions as mentioned below.

Step – 1: Opening the Spreadsheet

Right-click on the worksheet tab which you want as protected and select the ‘Protect the sheet’ option. In case you want to put in a description, you can do that too by clicking ‘Protected Sheets and ranges’.

Step -2: Setting Permissions

The sheet option will already show you the name you want to protect. In case you need it, you can change the name of the spreadsheet. Right at the bottom, you’ll see the button ‘Set permissions’, hit it. Then pick ‘Only you’ from the options in ‘Restrict who can edit this range’ and click ‘Done’ to save the changes.

No matter how many sheets or entire rows you want to protect at the same time, pulling that off will be a piece of cake if you follow this trick.

Final Words

If you’ve reached this part of the article, we bet you’ve got every detail you needed to know about how to unlock a google sheet and its cells. Now all you need to do is get that PC of yours opened and unlock each of the cells that you want to put your numbers in.

Additional Reading

Matt Jacobs has been working as an IT consultant for small businesses since receiving his Master’s degree in 2003. While he still does some consulting work, his primary focus now is on creating technology support content for SupportYourTech.com.

His work can be found on many websites and focuses on topics such as Microsoft Office, Apple devices, Android devices, Photoshop and more.

How do you lock and unlock a Google Sheet for editing?

Protect, hide, and edit sheets.

Open a spreadsheet in Google Sheets..

Click Data. Protected sheets and ranges. ... .

Click Add a sheet or range or click an existing protection to edit it..

To protect a range, click Range. ... .

Click Set permissions or Change permissions..

Choose how you want to limit editing: ... .

Click Save or Done..

How do you unlock permissions in Google Sheets?

Remove protection.

In a Google Sheet, click Data. Protect Sheets and ranges..

On the right panel that appears, to view all of the ranges with protections, click Cancel..

Find protection you want to delete. Click delete ..

Why won't my Google sheets let me edit?

If you can't edit a file, a few things could be wrong: The file owner didn't give you permission to view the file. You're signed in to a different Google Account. Someone else with edit access removed your permission to edit.