My Excel files will not open and seem to have disappeared on my Apple Mac pro

Search for the workbooks in Finder and on the OneDrive website before reinstalling or resetting Excel, because the next recovery step depends on whether the files are missing or merely will not open.

1. Locate the files

1. Open Finder.
2. Search This Mac for:
   • The workbook name or part of it.
   • xlsx, xls, and xlsm.
3. Check the usual folders:
   • Documents
   • Desktop
   • Downloads
   • iCloud Drive
   • OneDrive
4. Open the Mac Trash. If a workbook is there, right-click it and select Put Back.
5. If OneDrive is installed, sign in to the OneDrive website with the Microsoft account that was used previously. Use Search everything, then inspect Recycle bin and Personal Vault. Also check any other personal or work Microsoft account you may have used. Microsoft recommends searching the OneDrive website first because it shows the files stored and synchronized across devices.^1^

If a OneDrive file was deleted, select it in Recycle bin and choose Restore. For a personal account, deleted items can normally be restored within 30 days, provided they were not permanently deleted.^2^

2. Check Excel AutoRecover

If Excel or the Mac previously crashed, an automatically recovered copy may exist:

1. In Finder, select Go > Go to Folder, or press Shift+Command+G.
2. Enter:

~/Library/Containers/com.microsoft.Excel/Data/Library/Application Support/Microsoft

3. Search that folder for the workbook or recently modified files.
4. Open any likely copy and immediately use File > Save As to save it under a new name in Documents.

The Library location is hidden, so it must be opened with Go to Folder. AutoRecover periodically creates temporary recovery copies, but a copy may not exist if the file was closed with Don’t Save.^3^

3. If the files exist but do not open

First make a duplicate of an affected workbook in Finder so that troubleshooting does not alter the only copy. Then open Excel by itself and select File > Open rather than opening the file from Excel’s recent-files list.

Use the matching branch:

• Excel says it cannot find the file: the recent-files entry may point to an old location. Open the workbook from its actual Finder location. If its name, enclosing folders, or disk name contains unusual punctuation, rename a copied file using only letters, numbers, spaces, hyphens, and underscores; forbidden characters in the path have caused this specific Mac error.^4^
• Excel requests “Grant Access,” hangs, or reports an invalid format/extension: open Excel and choose Help > Check for Updates, then install every update offered. Microsoft identifies that issue as fixed in Excel version 16.34 and later.^5^
• Excel itself quits unexpectedly: update Office through Help > Check for Updates and install macOS updates. Only if the crash continues should Office be cleanly removed and reinstalled; do this after recovering or backing up the workbook files, not as the first step.^6^

4. If many OneDrive files changed or disappeared together

Microsoft 365 subscribers can roll their entire OneDrive back to an earlier point:

1. Open the OneDrive website.
2. Select Settings > Restore your OneDrive.
3. Choose a date before the files disappeared.
4. Review the activity list carefully, then start the restore.

This reverses file activity across OneDrive, not just Excel files. Files created after the selected restore point are moved to the Recycle Bin, so use this only when many files were affected.^7^

If none of these locations contains the files, the key details needed for the next diagnosis are the exact Excel error message, whether Excel opens without a workbook, and whether the files were previously stored under On My Mac, iCloud Drive, or OneDrive.

References

1. [Personal](https://support.microsoft.com/onedrive/find-lost-or-missing-files-in-onedrive)
2. [PC or Mac](https://support.microsoft.com/onedrive/restore-your-onedrive-files)
3. Recover files in Office for Mac | Microsoft Support
4. Excel files will not open on my Mac with Msft365 - Microsoft Q&A
5. Excel prompts you to grant access to files and then hangs or shows a warning that it cannot open the .xlsx file because the format or extension is not valid | Microsoft Support
6. my brand new 365 account is not working at all - Microsoft Q&A
7. Restore your OneDrive