Applies ToExcel for Microsoft 365 Excel for Microsoft 365 for Mac Excel for the web Excel 2024 Excel 2024 for Mac Excel 2021 Excel 2021 for Mac Excel 2019 Excel 2016

If you no longer want a drop-down list in your worksheet, you can remove it.

  1. Select the cell with the drop-down list.

    If you have multiple cells with drop-down lists that you want to delete, you can use Ctrl+Left click to select them.

  2. Click Data >Data Validation.

  3. On the Settings tab, click Clear All.

  4. Click OK

Click Clear All to remove a drop-down list

If you need to remove all Data Validation from a worksheet, including drop-down lists, but you don't know where they are, then you can use the Go To Special dialog. Press Ctrl+G > Special, then Data Validation > All or Same, and repeat the steps above.

If, instead of deleting it, you decide you want to change the options in your drop-down list, see Add or remove items from a drop-down list.

  1. Select the cell with the drop-down list.

    If you have multiple cells with drop-down lists that you want to delete, you can use Ctrl+Left click to select them.

  2. Click Data >Data Validation.

  3. On the Settings tab, click Clear All.

  4. Click OK

Click Clear All to remove a drop-down list

If you need to remove all Data Validation from a worksheet, including drop-down lists, but you don't know where they are, then you can use the Go To Special dialog. Press Ctrl+G > Special, then Data Validation > All or Same, and repeat the steps above.

If, instead of deleting it, you decide you want to change the options in your drop-down list, see Add or remove items from a drop-down list.

  1. Select the cells with the drop-down list.

  2. Click Data >Data Validation.

  3. On the Settings tab, click Clear All.

  4. Click OK.

If, instead of deleting the drop-down list, you decide you want to change the options, see Add or remove items from a drop-down list.

Need more help?

You can always ask an expert in the Excel Tech Community or get support in Communities.

See Also

Create a drop-down list

Apply data validation to cells

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