How to Show Menu Bar in Excel (2 Common Cases)

Case 1 – Showing the Menu Bar in Excel

Displaying the Collapsed Ribbon

In case the Excel Ribbon is collapsed, we can display it on the window screen.

• One option is to press Ctrl + F1 on both buttons at the same time to display the menu bar. Alternatively, double-click on any option of the ribbon tab.

• Alternatively, select any of the ribbon tab options and right-click on it, then choose the Collapse the Ribbon option to display the ribbon tab.

Unhide Menu Bar Using Ribbon Display Option

We’ll unhide the menu bar with the help of the Ribbon Display Option.

Steps:

• We will use this process if the ribbon tab has completely disappeared like the below image.

• Click on the top right side of your window worksheet and select the three-dot(…) option.

• You will find the hidden menu bar like the below image.

• If you want to show the ribbon permanently, go to the Ribbon Display Options button and choose Show Tabs and Commands.

Case 2 – Restoring the Missing Menu Bar in Excel

Tabs of Menu Bar Displayed but Commands Missing

Press Ctrl + F1 or double-click on any ribbon tab to get the whole ribbon with all ribbon commands.

Full Menu Bar Disappeared

Follow the steps similar to case 1:

• Click Ribbon Display Options and go to Show Tabs and Commands.

Tool Tabs Missing

Steps:

• Select the File option.

• Choose Options.

• The Excel Options window will open on your screen.
• Go to Customize Ribbon option.
• Select the desired tabs from the Main Tabs option and press OK.

• You get your desired tab tool on the menu bar.

Add-in Tab Disabled

Our main goal is to enable the Add-in tab to show in the menu bar.

Steps:

• Go to File, then select More Options to open the Excel Options window.

• Go to the Add-ins option and select Excel Add-ins to enable the option and press OK to enable this option.

Hiding the Menu Bar in Excel Using the Auto-Hide Ribbon Option

Steps:

• Go to the right side of the worksheet.
• Click on the Ribbon Display Options.
• Select the Auto-hide Ribbon option to hide the whole ribbon until you click on the top of the application.

• The final result should be similar to the below image.

Things to Remember

• The fastest way is to use the Ctrl + F1 keyboard shortcut to show the menu bar.
• These steps are only needed if the menu bar is missing or some portion of it is missing. Otherwise, using this method can make the menu bar disappear in some cases.
• When adding new Tool Tabs to the menu bar, the tab will be on the menu bar the whole time. If you don’t need the added tool, you can unselect it to remove it from the menu bar again.

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Related Articles

• What Is Contextual Tab in Excel?
• How to Pin the Ribbon in Excel

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