How To Revert to the Previous Version of an Excel File

Lee Stanton Lee Stanton is a versatile writer with a concentration on the software landscape, covering both mobile and desktop applications as well as online technologies. Read more September 14, 2021

Discovering that the Excel file you’ve been working on hasn’t been saved due to a technical error is frustrating to say the least. Realizing the edits that you’ve been making to a file are all wrong isn’t pleasant either. Thankfully, in most cases, you can recover the previous file version, whether it was saved or not.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to recover previous Excel file versions on Mac, Windows 10, via SharePoint, Teams, and OneDrive. Read on to find out how to avoid re-writing an entire file.

How To Recover a Previous Version of an Excel File in Windows 10

If you need to recover a previously saved version of an Excel file on Windows 10, follow the steps below:

1. Open the latest saved version of the Excel file you wish to recover
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2. Click “File,” then select “Info” from the dropdown menu.
   
3. Find the “Manage Workbook” section and locate the file version you wish to recover.
   
4. Click “Restore” to overwrite the current version. Alternatively, click “Compare” to compare versions without overwriting the current one.
   

If you need to recover a version that hasn’t been saved, here’s what you need to do:

1. Open the latest saved file version and click “File” at the top.
   
2. From the dropdown menu, select “Info,” then “Manage Workbook.”
   
3. Select “Recover Unsaved Workbooks.”
   
4. You’ll see a list of recent unsaved files. Select the file you wish to recover and click “Open.”
   
5. Choose how you wish to save the file.

How To Recover a Previous Version of an Excel File on a Mac

If you need to restore the previous version of a file that has been opened all the time, you can undo changes with the “Command” + “Z” shortcut. However, you’ll need to use the shortcut multiple times if you’ve made many changes. If you’re dealing with a file that has been saved and closed, you can recover the previous version by following these instructions:

1. Open the last-saved version of the Excel file you wish to recover.
2. Hover your mouse over the “File” tab, then over “Restore” in the dropdown menu.
3. Select “Restore to Last Saved to Recovering.”
4. You’ll see a list of all Excel file versions. Find the version you wish to restore.
5. If you wish to replace the current file version with the previous version, select “Restore.” If you wish to save the previous version without overwriting the current file, press down the Option button, then select “Restore a Copy.”

How To Recover a Previous Version of an Excel File from SharePoint

If you’re using the SharePoint server, you’re lucky. You can easily recover both saved and unsaved Excel file versions. To recover an Excel file, follow the steps below:

1. Launch SharePoint and navigate to the list or library containing the file you wish to restore from the Quick Launch bar. If you don’t see the library or list name, click “Site Contents,” then “View All Site Content,” and scroll through the list.
   
2. Right-click the document name or date and select “Version History” from the menu. You may have to click the three-dot icon first, then select “Version History.”
   
3. Scroll through the file version list until you find the desired file. Click the arrow icon next to the modification time.
   
4. Click “View” to open the version or “Restore” to open and save it.
   

How To Recover a Previous Version of an Excel File from Teams

You can’t access the previous versions of an Excel file directly through Microsoft Teams. However, you can open the file via another app and recover it there. Here’s how to do so:

1. Navigate to the “Files” tab in Teams.
   
2. Find the file you wish to recover and click the three-dot icon to the right from its name to see Options.
   
3. Click “Open in SharePoint” if you’re using SharePoint” or “Open in Excel” if you don’t.
   

If you’ve opened the file in SharePoint, the next steps are as follows:

1. Right-click “File” and select “Version History” from the menu. You may have to click the three-dot icon first, then select “Version History.”
   
2. Scroll through the file version list until you find the desired one. Click the arrow icon next to the modification time.
   
3. Click “View” to open the version or “Restore” to open and save it.

If you’ve opened the file in Excel on a Mac:

1. Hover your mouse over the “File” tab, then over “Restore” in the dropdown menu.
2. Select “Restore to Last Saved to Recovering.”
3. You’ll see a list of all Excel file versions. Find the version you wish to restore.
4. If you wish to replace the current file version with the previous version, select “Restore.” If you wish to save the previous version without overwriting the current file, press down the Option button, then select “Restore a Copy.”

On Windows 10, the steps are slightly different:

1. Click “File,” then select “Info” from the dropdown menu.
2. Find the “Manage Workbook” section and locate the file version you wish to recover.
3. Click “Restore” to overwrite the current version. Alternatively, click “Compare” to compare versions without overwriting the current one.

How To Recover a Previous Version of an Excel File From OneDrive

1. Launch OneDrive and sign in with your Microsoft account.
2. Find the last saved version of the Excel file you wish to recover and right-click it. Alternatively, open the file and select “More” from the menu at the top.
   
3. Click “Version History.”
   
4. You’ll see a list of file versions. Find the one you want to recover, click the three-dot icon next to it, and select “Restore.” In an older OneDrive version, click the arrow icon next to the version name and select “Restore.”
   

How to Recover a Previous Version of an Excel File from Office 365

The file recovery feature in Excel hasn’t changed a bit since the Office 365 release. The instructions for recovering the previous file version don’t differ depending on the Excel version but rather on your device. On Mac, follow the steps below:

1. Open the last-saved version of the Excel file you wish to recover.
2. Hover your mouse over the “File” tab, then over “Restore” in the dropdown menu.
3. Select “Restore to Last Saved to Recovering.”
4. You’ll see a list of all Excel file versions. Find the version you wish to restore.
5. If you wish to replace the current file version with the previous version, select “Restore.” If you wish to save the previous version without overwriting the current file, press down the Option button, then select “Restore a Copy.”

On a Windows 10 PC, follow the instructions below:

1. Open the latest saved version of the Excel file you wish to recover.
2. Click “File,” then select “Info” from the dropdown menu.
   
3. Find the “Manage Workbook” section and locate the file version you wish to recover.
   
4. Click “Restore” to overwrite the current version. Alternatively, click “Compare” to compare versions without overwriting the current one.

Prevent Losing Important Data

Hopefully, our guide has helped you restore the necessary Excel file version. To avoid such issues in the future, make sure to enable automatic file saving. A cloud backup also helps to keep all your files organized while not taking up space on your device.

What’s your best tip for backing up important files and easily accessing previous versions? Share your experiences in the comments section below.