Excel deleted my saved edits on a spreadsheet (twice).

Caroline Gold 0 Reputation points
2026-11-10T20:54:10.4066667+00:00

How can I retrieve edits I made to a spreadsheet? I saved all my edits on a spreadsheet to the downloads file on my computer. Twice I have opened the file to find the worksheet reverted to its original form (but still with the new name). The second time I hadn't even closed the app. I just walked away from my computer and came back and they were gone. Why is this happening? I had saved several times and have lost now several hours of work.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Excel | For business | Windows
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  1. Hendrix 2,770 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-11-10T21:32:45.27+00:00

    Hi Caroline,

    I’m really sorry to hear that this issue has caused you to lose several hours of work.

    Before making further changes to the workbook, please create a copy of the current file and save it somewhere outside the Downloads folder to avoid overwriting any data when attempting recovery.

    Please try the following:

    • In Microsoft Excel, go to File > Info > Manage Workbook > Recover Unsaved Workbooks
    • Open any recovered files and check the date and time. If you find the missing edits, use Save As immediately and give the workbook a different name
    • If Excel previously stopped responding or restarted, reopen Excel and check the Document Recovery pane for the most recent recovered copy.
    • Search the computer for the workbook name and sort the results by Date modified. Please check whether there are multiple copies in Downloads, Documents, Desktop, or an email attachment folder

    To help determine why this is happening, could you please share more details:

    • What is the file extension (.xlsx, .xls, or .csv)?
    • When you selected Save, did you receive any warning, read-only message, compatibility notice, or sign-in prompt?
    • Do multiple copies of the file appear in the Downloads folder?

    For future editing, please move the workbook from Downloads to Documents or OneDrive before editing. Saving it to OneDrive and enabling AutoSave provides version history and offers better protection against this type of data loss.

    Hope you're able to get this resolved soon. I'm looking forward to your response.

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