To unhide all rows in Excel, select the entire sheet, then use either a menu command or a keyboard shortcut to make every hidden row visible again.

Quick Scoop

Fastest method: select all, then unhide

  1. Click the small triangle at the top‑left corner of the sheet (above row 1 and left of column A) to select the entire worksheet.
  1. On Windows Excel:
    • Go to Home → Format → Hide & Unhide → Unhide Rows.
  1. On Mac Excel:
    • With the whole sheet selected, go to the top menu Format → Row → Unhide.

This forces every hidden row on that sheet to become visible in one go.

Keyboard shortcuts to unhide all rows

After selecting the entire sheet:

  • Windows:
    • Press Ctrl + Shift + 9 to unhide all hidden rows in the selection.
  • Mac:
    • Press Command + Shift + 9 (macOS shortcut for unhiding rows).

If nothing happens, double‑check that the sheet isn’t protected or filtered (see below).

When specific rows are hidden

If you know roughly where rows are hidden:

  1. Drag‑select the row headers above and below the hidden area (for example, select rows 5 and 10 if 6–9 are hidden).
  1. Right‑click the selected row numbers.
  2. Choose Unhide.

This is handy when only a few rows have been hidden intentionally.

Special case: first row (Row 1) hidden

If Row 1 is hidden, you can’t just click “above” it, so do this:

  1. Press Ctrl + G (or F5) to open Go To.
  1. Type A1 and press Enter to move the cursor to cell A1.
  1. Now use:
    • Home → Format → Hide & Unhide → Unhide Rows, or
    • Ctrl + Shift + 9 (Windows) / Command + Shift + 9 (Mac).

Row 1 will reappear while keeping the rest of your layout intact.

If rows still won’t unhide

If the usual unhide options are not working, check these common issues:

  • Filters:
    • Go to Data → Filter and clear or turn off any filters that might be hiding rows.
  • Zero‑height rows:
    • Select the whole sheet, then drag any row boundary downward to reset row height.
  • Grouped/outlined rows:
    • Look for plus/minus boxes down the left side; click + to expand groups.
  • Protected sheet:
    • Go to Review → Unprotect Sheet ; then try unhiding again, because protection can block formatting rows.

Tiny storytelling‑style example

Imagine opening a budget file from a colleague and half your data “disappears” after you sort by date. Instead of hunting row by row, you hit the top‑left triangle, press Ctrl + Shift + 9 , then clear a filter in the Data tab—and all your totals snap back into view.

The core trick: select everything first, then unhide. If that fails, think filters, grouping, or protection before assuming the data is gone.

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Learn how to unhide all rows in Excel with one click or shortcut, fix stubborn hidden rows caused by filters, grouping, or protection, and quickly restore your full worksheet view.

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