Excel will not run

Carter Lena 0 Reputation points
2026-08-14T06:37:44.3233333+00:00

I launched Excel, but after the small "Starting" window appeared, it did not run normally.

I am using Windows 11, MS 365 (Business license).

The same symptoms occurred even when running in standard mode after disabling and deleting add-ons via safe mode,

The issue was not resolved even after repairing MS Office online and uninstalling and reinstalling the program.

I would like to ask how to resolve this problem.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Excel | For business | Windows

2 answers

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  1. Dora-T 1,300 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-08-14T07:08:48.3066667+00:00

    Hi Carter Lena

    To better understand your issue, could you please provide the following information?

    -Does the issue occur only with Excel, or do other Microsoft 365 apps such as Word or PowerPoint also fail to open?

    -What is your current Excel version and build? You can find this under File > Account > About Excel.

    In the meantime, please refer to the AI-generated answer and try the following troubleshooting steps:

    -Check the XLStart / alternate startup folder contents.

    -Perform a selective startup (clean boot).

    -Inspect the OPEN / OPEN1 Excel registry entries if the issue persists.

    Additionally, you can try testing Excel with a new Windows user profile to determine whether the issue is related to your current Windows profile. For instructions on creating a new user account in Windows, please see: Manage User Accounts in Windows | Microsoft Support 

    Please let me know how it goes.

    Note: Please follow the steps in the forum documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.   

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  2. AI answer

    2026-08-14T06:38:04.05+00:00

    Since Excel still fails after Safe Mode add-ins were disabled and after Online Repair plus reinstall, the next supported troubleshooting path is to check startup items, disabled items, and Windows conflicts.

    1. Check whether Excel has disabled a component automatically
      • Open another Office app if available.
      • Go to File > Options > Add-ins.
      • In Manage, select Disabled Items > Go.
      • If Excel-related items appear, enable only what is necessary and test again.
      • If the problem returns after re-enabling an item, leave that item disabled.
    2. Investigate Excel startup folders
      • Excel can automatically open files from the XLStart folder or an alternate startup folder.
      • A bad workbook or startup file in those folders can prevent normal startup.
      • Start Excel without opening workbooks from those startup folders and test again.
      • If Excel starts normally afterward, one of those startup files is the cause.
    3. Perform a selective startup of Windows
      • A background application, process, or service can conflict with Excel.
      • Use selective startup (clean boot) in Windows to identify whether another program is interfering.
      • If Excel works in selective startup, re-enable services and startup items gradually to isolate the conflicting software.
    4. Check Excel add-ins in the registry only if needed
      • Since COM add-ins were already disabled, the next documented step is checking Excel add-ins loaded through the OPEN registry values.
      • Warning: registry changes can cause serious problems if done incorrectly. Back up the registry first.
      • Open Run, type regedit.exe, and go to: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\<1x.0>\Excel\Options
      • For Microsoft 365 / newer Excel versions, 16.0 is used.
      • Look for REG_SZ values named OPEN, OPEN1, and similar.
      • Rename them by adding Renamed to the beginning, for example OPEN to RenamedOPEN.
      • Restart Excel normally.
      • If Excel starts, restore them one at a time to identify the problematic add-in.
    5. Use the Excel automated troubleshooter
      • On Windows 10 or later, the Excel crash troubleshooter can automate Safe Mode isolation.
      • It can disable COM add-ins, disable Excel add-ins, move startup-folder files, and rename custom toolbar files.
      • Warning: it may modify the registry and move startup files, so back up the registry and startup-folder files first.
    6. If Excel still does not start in Safe Mode or continues failing after these checks
      • The documented next action is to repair Office again if needed, but that has already been done.
      • At that point, the remaining supported path from the available guidance is isolating startup-folder files and Windows service/application conflicts through selective startup.

    Given the steps already completed, the highest-value next actions are:

    • check XLStart / alternate startup folder contents,
    • run a selective startup (clean boot),
    • then inspect OPEN / OPEN1 Excel registry add-in entries if the issue remains.

    References:

    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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