Excel gridlines are the light lines that outline cells on screen. You can hide them from the View tab (or Page Layout) when you want a cleaner report view. Hiding gridlines does not delete cell borders you applied yourself.

What gridlines are (and are not)

Gridlines help you see cell boundaries while you build a model. They are a view setting, not the same as borders you add under Home → Font → Borders. If you need lines on a printed P&L, set borders explicitly; do not rely on gridlines alone.

When removing gridlines is useful

• Presenting a polished dashboard or board pack on screen

• Emphasizing charts sitting on a worksheet

• Reducing visual noise once the layout is finished

Turn them back on when you return to detailed editing. Readable structure still matters during close.

How to remove gridlines in Excel

1. Open the worksheet.

2. Go to the View tab.

3. In the Show group, uncheck Gridlines.

Alternatively, open the Page Layout tab and uncheck View under Gridlines in the Sheet Options group. Use Page Layout when you also care about print gridline settings.

Keyboard shortcut (Windows)

Press Alt, then W, then V, then G to toggle gridlines. Repeat the same sequence to show them again.

Why finance teams use LiveFlow

Turning gridlines off is a finishing touch. The harder problem is whether the numbers on that clean sheet are still last week’s export. LiveFlow FP&A connects QuickBooks Online (and other books) to Excel so your formatted reports refresh without rebuilding the layout each month.

CTA: Book a demo of LiveFlow FP&A for Excel.