How to Bypass protected Excel sheet password, If forgot?

If you forget the password to an Excel sheet, it can definitely cause a bit of panic, but don't worry too much just yet. Because Excel's sheet-level protection is mostly designed to prevent accidental edits rather than act as high-level encryption, it can actually be bypassed.

Note: This method works for a Protected Sheet (where you can't edit cells). It will not work if the entire Excel file itself is encrypted with a password required just to open it.

Here is the most reliable, completely free way to break the password using a built-in Windows trick.

Method 1 : The "ZIP File" Trick (No Software Required)

This method works because modern Excel files (.xlsx) are actually just zipped folders containing XML code. We can open that folder, look for the "protection" tag, and delete it.

Step 1: Make a Backup

• Before doing anything, make a copy of your Excel file just in case something goes wrong.

Step 2: Change the File Extension

• Open Windows File Explorer and make sure you can see file extensions (In File Explorer, go to View > check the box for File name extensions).
• Right-click your Excel file, choose Rename, and change the ending from .xlsx to .zip.
• Windows will warn you that the file might become unusable. Click Yes.

Step 3: Remove the Sheet Protection Code

• Open the new .zip file (double-click it).
• Navigate through these folders: xl -> worksheets.
• Inside, you will see files like sheet1.xml, sheet2.xml, etc. Find the one that corresponds to your locked sheet.
• Copy that sheet1.xml file out of the zip folder and paste it onto your desktop (you can't edit it inside the zip).
• Right-click the file on your desktop, choose Open with, and select Notepad.
• Press Ctrl + F to open the search bar, type sheetProtection, and hit enter.
• Look for the entire tag that starts with <sheetProtection and ends with />. It will look something like this:<sheetProtection password="XXXX" sheet="1" objects="1" scenarios="1"/>
• Delete that entire block of text (from < all the way to />).
• Save and close the Notepad file.

Step 4: Put it back together

• Drag your edited sheet1.xml file from your desktop back into the .zip folder, replacing the old one.
• Close the zip folder.
• Rename the file extension back from .zip to .xlsx.
• Open the Excel file, and your sheet will be completely unprotected and editable again!

Method 2 : Use Google Sheets

If the thought of editing code makes you nervous, try uploading the locked Excel file to Google Drive and opening it as a Google Sheet. Google Sheets often ignores Excel's sheet-level protection entirely, allowing you to edit the data and re-download it as a brand-new, unprotected Excel file.