How to Repair Corrupted Excel File 2016 [Updated Guide!]

Microsoft Excel has become the cornerstone for companies and industries as they use its versatile tools. It is mainly used for data analysis, management, and presenting large data in a concise and arranged manner. Therefore, it is highly frustrating when you cannot open your important files because they get corrupted or damaged.

The need for an effective repair system is in high demand that can fix the damaged files while also maintaining their format and structure. This article will tackle the various reasons why files get corrupted and provide you with ways on how to repair corrupted Excel files 2016.

Part 1. Why Does Excel File 2016 Get Corrupted or Damaged in First Place?

There are several reasons why your files get damaged or corrupted, which we will discuss below to help you identify the exact problem you are facing.

1. Corrupted Storage: When you feel that the file is corrupted and cannot be opened Excel 2016, it can be due to a faulty device. Moreover, any problem in the different parts of the external storage unit can cause file corruption.
2. Malware or Virus Attack: Another reason for Excel file corruption is an invasion of malicious malware or viruses. These viruses can corrupt files by altering their content or damaging their structure.
3. Sudden System Shutdown: Any type of sudden power outage or abrupt computer shutdown leads to damaged Excel files. This unexpected shutdown interrupts the saving process, making the file unable to open.
4. Excel File Size: Users may not consider it, but an excessively large or complex Excel file is mostly prone to corruption. Furthermore, due to the large file sizes, various software applications cannot open the file.
5. Software Conflict: An outdated Excel software is highly incompatible with certain formats of Excel files. That's why updating is essential since it can effortlessly resolve your problem.

Part 2. One-Click Advanced and Reliable Solution to Fix Corrupted Excel File 2016

After understanding the major causes of why your files are corrupted, we will dig deeper into the solutions. One of the best file repair software is Repairit, which can repair any corrupted file with a high success rate. Moreover, whatever the reason for corruption is, it easily caters to every corruption cause and provides you with a highly repaired Excel file.

Additionally, Repairit can handle Excel files in every format and repair them quickly and safely. With its support for Microsoft Excel 2007 to 365 versions, users can easily recover their files without losing the data or structure. They can also add a highly damaged file of any size, and this software will deal with it within seconds.

Key Features of Repairit File Repair

1. Batch File Repair: This is an effective solution that lets you add more than one file to this software and repair them at the same time.
2. Supported Formats: It supports all formats of Excel, such as XLSX and more, to give you more options while repairing.
3. Repair Progress Details: During the file repair process, this toolkit displays a progress screen with file details.

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• Repair damaged Excel files with all levels of corruption, including blank files, files not opening, unrecognizable format, unreadable content, files layout changed, etc.

• Repairs all kinds of data stored in damaged Excel files such as tables, charts, formulas, comments, images, etc.

• Support all formats of Excel files: XLSX/XLSM/XLTX/XLTM/XLS

• Perfectly repair corrupted files with a very high success rate, without modifying the original file.

• No limit to the number and size of the repairable files.

• Support Windows 11/10/8/7/Vista, Windows Server 2003/2008/2012/2016/2019/2022, and macOS 10.12~macOS 13.

• Repairit also supports all formats of PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, ZIP, and Adobe files.

Simple Guide on How to Repair Corrupted or Damaged Excel 2016 Files Using Repairit

Follow the given steps to learn how to recover corrupted Excel files 2016 using the robust File Repair tool of Repairit:

Step 1. Access the File Repair Feature on Repairit

After installing and launching this file repair software, open its main interface and head to the left-side panel. From here, click the “More Types Repair” tab and head to the “Corrupted File Repair” section. Now, in the “File Repair” feature, press the “Start” option to open the next window.

Step 2. Add Desired Corrupted Excel File(s)

On the next window, hit the “+Add” button to open the File Explorer and choose the desired corrupted Excel file from the system. Once selected, press the “Open” button to import the Excel 2016 file into the software.

Step 3. Initiate the Excel File Repair Process

After the Excel 2016 file is added, hit the “Repair” button at the bottom right corner of the screen and initiate the repair process. Finally, press the “Save” button and export the file afterward.

Part 3. Other 4 Basic Methods to Repair Excel Files 2016

When the file is corrupted and cannot be opened Excel 2016, you can use the following methods to explore how to easily repair the spreadsheet.

Method 1. Use Open and Repair Feature

Microsoft Excel has a built-in open and repair feature, which is designed to fix corrupted files as much as possible. Moreover, it leverages a native algorithm that expertly identifies and resolves the core issue within seconds.

It is one of the effective solutions that help you with minor corruption problems while also preserving all the essential data and formatting. Now, learn how to recover the corrupted Excel file 2016 using the given steps:

Step 1. Open the tool on your desktop and click the “Open” option from the left-side panel. Now, press the “Browse” option to open the “File Explorer” dialog box.

Step 2. After that, select the desired corrupted Excel file and enter the “Open” drop-down menu. From here, click the “Open and Repair…” option to activate the repair feature.

Step 3. In the “Microsoft Excel” pop-up box, hit the “Repair” button to start the repair process, which will resolve your issue.

Method 2. Change the File Type

Changing the Excel file format to XLSX or XLS can also help resolve the corrupted file. You can use this method to solve the issue while maintaining the file formatting and size. Here, we will guide you about how you can do so with these comprehensive steps:

Instructions. Open the location where your Excel file is located and enable the “Image name extensions” option from the “View” drop-down menu or section. Afterward, select your file, press the “F2” key, and rename the extension to recover your corrupted Excel file 2016.

Method 3. Recover the Temporary Excel File

Another reason why you have corrupted Excel files is because the files are not properly saved due to a power failure, system crash, or any misoperation. That is why Excel also provides a solution for this problem, which is recovering the temporarily unsaved files.

Restoring these files can help you avoid significant corruption in documents. Now, look at the following steps and learn how to recover a corrupted Excel file 2016:

Step 1. Head to the Excel software on your computer and press the “Open” option from the left panel. Now, in the “Recent” tab, hit the “Recover Unsaved Workbooks” button to open the temporary Excel files.

Step 2. In the “Open” dialog box, choose the desired temporary Excel file and hit the “Open” button to save it properly.

Method 4. Use the Calculation Method

If everything fails to repair your corrupted files, turn to Excel’s manual method, known as the calculation method. Using this feature, you can prevent the software from executing complex formulas or functions automatically. So, users get to enable the manual method to recalculate everything within the document. In the following, we provided the steps on how to recover the damaged Excel file via this method:

Step 1. From the main window of Excel software, navigate to the “File” tab and choose “Options” from the bottom left corner to open the “Excel Options” window.

Step 2. Afterward, open the “Formulas” tab and head to the “Calculation Options” section. Now, check the “Manual” option, tick the “Recalculate Workbook Before Saving” option, and press the “OK” button to resolve the corrupted file problem.

Conclusion

In the end, we learned that for various reasons, your important Excel files can get corrupted and damaged. So, to repair them, we looked at the 5 best methods that can seamlessly repair the documents with ease. Through all of these methods, you can learn how to recover corrupt Excel files in 2016.

Among all the methods, one of the most recommended options is the Repairit toolbox. To fix your files, it has an intelligent algorithm that identifies the main problems in the corrupted file. This tool also provides you with a Preview option after the repair process to confirm the document structure and format.