Freeze Rows or Columns in Excel

When you have a lot of columns or records inside a sheet, it can be difficult to compare one or more columns or rows to others.

For that reason, there is an option called freeze panes that allows you to lock single or multiple rows (or columns), so they are always visible.

Freeze a single row

Normally, if you scroll your data the top row will disappear with the rest of the rows. You can make this row visible all the time by freezing it.

To freeze the top row, go to View >> Window >> Freeze Panes >> Freeze Top Row. Your active cell doesn’t have to be inside a header or data. Excel knows that it has to freeze the top row.

Now, if you try to scroll your view to see rows that are at the bottom, the top row is visible all the time.

Freeze a single column

In a similar way, you can freeze a single column.

Navigate to View >> Window >> Freeze Panes >> Freeze First Column.

It will automatically unfreeze the top row and freezes the first column.

Unfreeze

After you freeze a row or column, the top icon changes from Freeze Panes to Unfreeze Panes.

Freeze a single row and column at the same time

As you’ve noticed, once you freeze a column, you unfreeze a row. But there is a way to freeze both rows and columns.

Click the Unfreeze button, if your column or row is frozen. Click cell B2, and navigate to View >> Window >> Freeze Panes, and click the Freeze Panes button.

Freeze multiple rows (or columns)

So far, we used an option to freeze only a single row or column, or both. But there is an option where you can freeze multiple rows and columns.

It’s very easy and intuitive. If you click cell C3, you are going to have two rows and two columns frozen. If you want, for example only two rows are frozen, you can click A3, two columns – C1.

Tomasz Decker is an Excel specialist, skilled in data analysis and financial modeling.