Printing Problems

How to Print Selected Excel Dashboards Without Blank Pages

John Wilson Sep 30, 2026 869 views

Question details

The user needs to print specific dashboard sections in an Excel workbook without including unwanted blank pages caused by formatting or page breaks.

How to Print Selected Excel Dashboards Without Blank Pages

Product: Microsoft Excel
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Attempting to print specific sections of a complex workbook containing multiple dashboards, manual page breaks, merged cells, and formatted empty cells.
Observed behavior: Excel prints unwanted blank pages alongside the selected dashboards because filtering data does not override manual page breaks or formatted empty cell ranges.

Before you start

Before proceeding, switch your worksheet view to Page Break Preview to visually identify any manual page breaks or empty formatted cells that might be triggering the extra blank pages.

Solution 1Recommended

Export Workbook to PDF and Remove Blank Pages

Save the Excel file as a PDF document, which allows you to easily view and delete unwanted blank pages before final printing.

Because manual page breaks cannot simply be ignored by default Excel settings, exporting to PDF offers a reliable visual workaround. This method gives you complete control over exactly which pages get sent to the printer.

Export to PDF

Go to File > Save As or Export, and choose the PDF format to save your entire workbook or selected sheets.

Open in a PDF Editor

Open the newly created PDF file using your preferred PDF editing software.

Delete Blank Pages

Navigate to the page thumbnails view, select the blank pages that were generated by Excel's page breaks, and delete them.

Print the Document

Once the blank pages are removed, print the remaining dashboard pages directly from your PDF software.

Export Workbook to PDF and Remove Blank Pages

Tip: Using a third-party PDF tool prevents you from having to alter the formatting, merged cells, or manual page breaks in your original Excel workbook.

Solution 2

Print Required Dashboards Individually

Select and print only the specific dashboard pages you need by adjusting the print range settings.

Solution 3

Automate Printing with a VBA Macro

For advanced users with many dashboards, a VBA script can dynamically define print areas and skip blank ranges.

Effortless Printing with WPS Office

Print Dashboards Perfectly with WPS Spreadsheet

WPS Office provides highly intuitive page break previews and print area settings, allowing you to easily select and print only the dashboards you need. With its built-in PDF tools, you can manage complex print jobs seamlessly.

1. Open your Workbook: Launch WPS Spreadsheet and open your dashboard file.
2. Set Print Area: Highlight the exact cell range of your dashboard, go to the Page Layout tab, and click Print Area > Set Print Area.
3. Preview and Print: Click Print Preview to verify that no blank pages are included, then click the Print button to finish.

Perfectly compatible with Microsoft Excel (.xlsx) formatsIntuitive Page Layout and Print Area management to easily exclude blank cellsBuilt-in PDF exporter and editor for advanced document managementLightweight, fast, and completely free to use

microsoft office alternative - wps office

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does Excel print blank pages even when data is filtered?

Filtering data hides the rows but does not remove manual page breaks or empty cells that have been previously formatted. Excel still processes these hidden breaks and formatting as part of the overall print area, resulting in blank sheets.

How can I quickly find what is causing the blank pages?

Switch your worksheet view to 'Page Break Preview' from the View tab. This mode highlights the exact boundaries of printed pages with blue lines, letting you easily spot trailing empty cells, stray formatting, or unnecessary manual breaks.

Can I tell Excel to ignore manual page breaks?

There is no direct toggle to ignore all manual page breaks at print time in Excel. You must either remove them manually from the Page Layout tab, select specific pages to print, or use workarounds like printing to PDF first.

Document & File Issues