Formatting Issues

How to Fix Strange Symbols in Excel Files Opened from SharePoint

Phi Hung Vo Oct 20, 2026 868 views

Question details

Users experience an issue where strange symbols or foreign characters replace regular text in Excel workbooks opened from SharePoint.

How to Fix Strange Symbols in Excel Files Opened from SharePoint

Product: Microsoft Excel, SharePoint
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Opening XLS or XLSX files directly from a SharePoint environment.
Observed behavior: Strange symbols and unreadable characters appear in the spreadsheet. Restarting the computer or performing an online Office repair temporarily resolves the rendering issue, but the problem recurs later.

Before you start

Before proceeding with system tweaks, download a local copy of the affected Excel file and open it on a different computer to determine if the corruption is within the file itself or limited to your local Office and SharePoint environment.

Solution 1Recommended

Clear the Office Cache and Re-authenticate

Since restarting the computer only provides temporary relief, the issue is likely tied to a corrupted Microsoft Office document cache or a syncing glitch. Clearing the cache and re-signing in often permanently resolves these rendering issues.

Microsoft Office caches files to open them faster from SharePoint. When this cache becomes bloated or corrupted, it can cause text rendering and encoding issues, displaying strange symbols.

Sign out of Microsoft 365

Open Excel, click on 'File' > 'Account', and click 'Sign Out'. Close all running Microsoft Office applications.

Clear the Office Document Cache

Press Windows + R, type '%localappdata%\Microsoft\Office\16.0\OfficeFileCache' (adjust the version number if necessary), and delete all files in this folder.

Restart and Sign In

Restart your computer, launch Excel again, and sign back into your Microsoft 365 account before attempting to open the SharePoint file.

Clear the Office Cache and Re-authenticate

Cache Cleared Safely: Clearing the Office document cache will not delete your original files stored on SharePoint; it only removes local temporary data.

Solution 2

Check File Encoding and Font Usage

If the problem is limited to a specific file, it may contain unusual fonts or encoding conflicts that Excel fails to render properly upon opening from a web server.

Solution 3

Update Microsoft Office and Windows

Applying the latest software updates can patch known memory leaks or rendering bugs affecting the integration between Microsoft SharePoint and Excel.

Free Microsoft Office alternative

Try WPS Office to Open Your Spreadsheets Flawlessly

If Microsoft Excel continues to display encoding errors or rendering bugs when managing network files, WPS Office provides a highly reliable, lightweight alternative. It works seamlessly with Microsoft formats and avoids heavy cache-related glitches, allowing you to view and edit your data exactly as intended.

1. Download WPS Office: Visit the official WPS website and download the free WPS Office installer.
2. Install the Software: Run the installer and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the quick setup.
3. Open Your Spreadsheet: Launch WPS Spreadsheets and open your downloaded SharePoint file to view it without strange symbol errors.

Outstanding compatibility with Microsoft Excel XLS, XLSX, and CSV file formats.Lightweight architecture that avoids the heavy caching glitches found in other software.Familiar interface that requires zero learning curve to start editing immediately.Completely free to download and use for your daily spreadsheet tasks.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do foreign characters appear in my downloaded Excel file?

This usually occurs due to an encoding mismatch. If a file contains special characters and is saved in UTF-8 format but Excel opens it using the default ANSI encoding, the characters will display as strange symbols or question marks.

Does clearing the Microsoft Office cache delete my files on SharePoint?

No. The Office Document Cache only stores temporary background files on your local computer to help documents load faster. Clearing it will not delete or alter your actual documents stored on SharePoint or OneDrive.

Can missing Windows fonts cause weird symbols in Excel?

Yes. If an Excel workbook was created using a specific custom font that is not installed on your local computer, Excel may substitute it with a default font incorrectly, causing text to appear as unusual symbols or wingdings.

Document & File Issues