How to Remove Blank Rows in Excel

This article explains three methods for deleting blank rows in an Excel spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel 2019, Excel 2016, and Office 365, including deleting manually, using a keyboard shortcut, and using the Find & Select option.

Two Ways to Delete Individual Rows in Microsoft Excel

If you're working with a small, uncomplicated spreadsheet, there are a couple of easy ways to delete a single row or even a few rows without too much trouble. The easiest of those ways is to highlight the row by selecting the row number and then use the Ctrl + - keyboard shortcut to delete the row. This is fast and easy if you have only a small number or even the occasional wayward blank row to delete.

Another easy way to delete a single row in Microsoft Excel is to right-click the row number and then select Delete from the context menu that appears. This deletes only the row selected.

How to Delete Empty Rows in Excel With Find & Select

If you're working with a larger worksheet in Excel, deleting rows individually, or even a few at a time, can be a pain, not to mention time-consuming. Fortunately, there's an easy way to delete all your blank rows at one time.

1. In the worksheet where you want to delete rows, go to the Home tab and select Find & Select from the Editing group.

   

2. In the menu that appears, select Go to Special.

   

3. The Go to Special dialog box appears. Click the radio button next to Blanks and then click OK.

   

4. This will select all the blank rows in your spreadsheet.

   Be careful when using this method to select blank rows. If you have rows that are only partially complete, those rows will be selected and deleted when you complete the steps in this instruction set. If you don't want to delete partially complete rows, you may need to use the Ctrl + click method of selecting rows mentioned above.

5. With the rows selected, on the Home tab, select Delete from the Cells group.

   

6. From the Delete menu, select Delete Sheet Rows.

   

7. Alternatively, once the blank rows are selected, you can use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + -. This opens a Delete dialog box, in which you should select the radio button next to Entire row and click OK.

   If you inadvertently delete rows that you need to bring back before you do anything else on the worksheet, press Ctrl + Z on your keyboard to undo the delete action. This will bring back all the rows you just deleted, however, so you'll need to re-delete the other rows.