How to Fix Excel Cannot Copy and Paste Between Workbooks on Mac
Question details
The user is unable to copy and paste cells from one Excel workbook to another on a Mac, encountering an error regarding multiple selections.
- Product
- Microsoft Excel for Mac
- Device & OS
- Mac
- Scenario
- Attempting to copy data from a specific source spreadsheet into a different workbook.
- Observed behavior
- Excel displays the error message 'This action will not work on multiple selections' even when only a single cell is actively selected.
Before proceeding, check the bottom tab bar of your Excel window to ensure you haven't accidentally grouped or highlighted multiple sheet tabs at the same time.
Ungroup Multiple Selected Worksheets
Inadvertently selecting multiple sheet tabs is the most common trigger for the 'multiple selections' copy-paste error.
When multiple worksheets are grouped, Excel applies your actions across all selected sheets. This often prevents copying and pasting data to other workbooks, triggering an error even if you only clicked a single cell on the visible sheet.
Look at the bottom of your Excel workbook where the worksheet tabs are located. If multiple tabs are white and bolded, they are currently grouped.
Right-click (or Control-click) any of the worksheet tabs at the bottom.
Click 'Ungroup Sheets' from the context menu. If this option is grayed out, simply click on a different sheet tab that is not currently active to break the grouping.
Select the cell or range of data you need, press Command+C to copy, and try pasting it into your target workbook.
Move or Copy Sheets to a New Workbook
If the error occurs only within one specific file despite no sheets being grouped, the workbook itself may have underlying file corruption.
Try WPS Office to Easily Manage Your Spreadsheets on Mac
If you are tired of dealing with file corruption, freezing, or copy-paste errors in Excel for Mac, consider switching to WPS Office. It is a powerful, free, and highly compatible productivity suite that seamlessly handles all your spreadsheet tasks.
- 1. Install WPS Office: Download and install the free WPS Office suite for Mac from the official website.
- 2. Open your file: Launch WPS Spreadsheet and open the problematic Excel file directly.
- 3. Copy and Paste: Select the data you need, right-click to copy, and paste it smoothly into a new workbook without encountering multiple selection errors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Excel say 'This action will not work on multiple selections'?
This error most commonly occurs when you have accidentally grouped two or more worksheet tabs together. It can also appear if the Excel workbook has suffered from minor file corruption, confusing the application into thinking multiple data points or sheets are actively selected.
How do I know if my Excel file is corrupted on Mac?
If you isolate an issue—like a copy-paste failure—to a single specific document, while other new or existing Excel files function perfectly, it is highly likely that the isolated file has internal corruption or conflicting background configurations.
Will I lose my data if I transfer my sheets to a new Excel workbook?
No. When you use the 'Move or Copy' feature and check 'Create a copy', Excel transfers all your cell data, formatting, macros, and formulas to the new workbook cleanly, leaving the original source file untouched.
