OneDrive File Issues

How to Fix Excel OneDrive Sync Issues When Multiple Users Edit a File

Camila Milosovich Oct 9, 2026 868 views

Question details

Users experience missing data and blank rows when co-authoring an Excel workbook hosted on OneDrive.

How to Fix Excel OneDrive Sync Issues When Multiple Users Edit a File

Product: Microsoft Excel, OneDrive
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Collaborating on a shared Excel workbook in OneDrive with multiple users simultaneously.
Observed behavior: Inserted rows and newly entered data fail to synchronize across users, resulting in blank cells appearing for other collaborators in both desktop and web versions of Excel.

Before you start

Before troubleshooting, ensure all collaborators have a stable internet connection and have not paused their OneDrive synchronization.

Solution 1Recommended

Transfer Content to a New Excel Workbook

If the issue is isolated to a specific corrupted file, migrating the data to a newly created workbook can clear underlying synchronization bugs.

Sometimes, individual Excel files develop internal metadata corruption that prevents OneDrive from merging changes from multiple authors accurately. Moving the raw data to a fresh file is the most effective way to restore collaboration functionality.

Create a New File

Open Excel and click on 'File' > 'New' > 'Blank workbook' to create a clean spreadsheet.

Copy the Original Data

Open the affected shared workbook. Highlight the data you want to retain, right-click the selection, and choose 'Copy'.

Paste Data Without Corruption

Go to the new blank workbook. Right-click the starting cell (e.g., A1) and select 'Paste Special' > 'Values'. This prevents hidden formatting corruption from carrying over.

Upload and Test Collaboration

Save the new file directly to your OneDrive folder. Share the new link with your team and test if co-authoring works without blank cells appearing.

Transfer Content to a New Excel Workbook

Verify with Excel for the Web: To confirm if the issue is file-specific rather than a desktop app glitch, open the original file in Excel for the Web. If the blank cells still exist there, the file itself is likely corrupted and needs to be recreated.

Solution 2

Check OneDrive and Excel Version Compatibility

Outdated versions of the Excel desktop app or the OneDrive sync client can cause co-authoring features to fail during real-time edits.

Free Microsoft Office alternative

Experience Seamless Collaboration with WPS Office

If Microsoft Excel and OneDrive continue to experience synchronization errors, try WPS Office. It provides a lightweight, highly compatible alternative with its own reliable cloud storage (WPS Cloud) for smooth real-time co-authoring.

1. Download WPS Office: Visit the official WPS website to download and install the free WPS Office suite on your device.
2. Upload to WPS Cloud: Open your .xlsx file in WPS Spreadsheet and save it directly to WPS Cloud to enable online sharing.
3. Invite Collaborators: Click the 'Share' button in the top right corner to generate a link and invite your team to co-edit in real-time.

Free and lightweight office suite with rapid performanceFully compatible with Microsoft Excel (.xlsx, .xls) formatsSeamless real-time collaboration via WPS Cloud without sync lagFamiliar user interface ensuring zero learning curve

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do cells appear blank when co-authoring in Excel?

This usually happens due to synchronization lags, conflicting edits by multiple users attempting to modify the same rows simultaneously, or temporary file corruption within the local Office document cache.

Does Excel for the Web have the same sync issues as the desktop app?

Excel for the Web edits the live file directly on the server, making it less prone to local sync cache issues. However, if the file's internal structure is corrupted, blank cells will appear in both the web and desktop versions.

How do I force OneDrive to sync changes in an Excel file?

You can force a sync by clicking the OneDrive icon in your taskbar, selecting the gear icon, and clicking 'Pause syncing' followed immediately by 'Resume syncing'. Alternatively, closing the workbook and reopening it forces Excel to fetch the latest server version.

Document & File Issues