How do I find all errors in an Excel sheet?

Press F5 > Special > Formulas > Errors to select every error cell, or use =ISERROR() in a helper column and filter. Tellsheet's List All Errors goes further: it writes a report to a new sheet listing each error cell's address, column, and error type (#REF!, #N/A, #DIV/0!, etc.).

What do the Excel error types mean?

#REF! is a deleted reference, #N/A a lookup that found nothing, #DIV/0! division by zero, #VALUE! a wrong data type, #NAME? an unknown name, #NUM! an invalid number. List All Errors reports the exact type per cell so you know how to fix each.

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How to Find All Errors in Excel

One #REF! buried in row 4,000 can quietly poison a total. Here's how to round up every error cell — the built-in selection trick, a formula, and a one-click report you can actually read.

Last updated: August 2026

Cell	Column		Error
B3	Score	→	#DIV/0!
A4	Name	→	#REF!

Method 1 — Go To Special > Errors

Press F5 (or Ctrl+G) > Special.
Choose Formulas, tick only Errors, and OK.

Excel selects every error cell — handy for applying a fill or deleting — but it's a live selection, not a list you can read, sort, or hand to a colleague.

Method 2 — ISERROR / ERROR.TYPE

=ISERROR(A2) flags an error; =ERROR.TYPE(A2) returns a code for which one. You'd add a helper column and filter it to TRUE — workable, but it clutters the sheet and doesn't give addresses.

The 1-click way — Tellsheet

List All Errors sweeps your selection and writes a clean report to a new sheet: every error cell's address, its column (by header), and the error type — #REF!, #N/A, #DIV/0!, #VALUE!, #NAME?, #NUM! and the rest. Work down the list and fix each at its source. Pairs with Formula Map (trace a broken result) and Explain Formula.

Frequently asked questions

How do I find all errors in a sheet?

F5 > Special > Formulas > Errors to select them, or Tellsheet's List All Errors for a readable address/column/type report on a new sheet.

How do I highlight error cells?

Conditional Formatting with =ISERROR(A1), or Go To Special > Errors then apply a fill.

What do the error types mean?

#REF! deleted reference, #N/A lookup miss, #DIV/0! divide by zero, #VALUE! wrong type, #NAME? unknown name, #NUM! invalid number.

How do I trace where an error comes from?

Use Formula Map to see a formula's precedents and dependents and follow a #REF! back to its source.

Related Excel guides

List every error in one click

List All Errors reports each #REF!/#N/A/#DIV0 cell — address, column, and type — on a new sheet, inside Excel.

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