How to Change or Delete a Cell Name in Excel

It's easy to name a cell. You click on the cell, put the cursor in the "Name Box" to the left of the Formula Bar (see image below), type a name, and press Enter. Then you can reference that cell in other parts of the workbook.


In the example below we have named the cell "Sub1" because we will reference this Subtotal in a Summary worksheet.

However, after naming a cell, it seems like Excel won't let you delete or change the name! If you click in the Name Box and type over the name or delete the name, nothing happens! The name remains.

So, how do I change a cell name? How do I delete a cell name? It's pretty easy ... it's just hidden!

To delete or change a cell name, click the Formulas tab. Then click Name Manager on the "Defined Names" group of the Formulas ribbon.

The Name Manager window displays and lists ALL of the cell names that have ever been defined in the worksheets in that workbook.

To delete a cell name, click on the cell name and click Delete button.

To change a cell name, click on the cell name, click the Edit button, Change the name and click OK. When finished, click Close.

Hmmm. Now I think I need to create a post about how to use cell names!

►  Take a look at some of our other interesting posts, such as A Dozen Sample Math Formulas for Microsoft Excel