Microsoft Excel is a standard tool for different sorts of data keeping around the world, it provides awesome productivity and security features. One of them is password protection, it allows user to set "Password to open" and "Password to modify" on their Excel worksheets and workbooks. If you have forgotten your password and want to know how to crack Excel passwords, then follow the solutions given below.
- Solution #1: Crack Excell Passwords with ZIP Software
- Solution #2: How to Crack Excel Password with PassFab for Excel
- Solution #3: Password Crack in Excel Using VBA Code
- Solution #4: Crack Excel Using Free Online Excel Password Cracker
Solution #1: Cracker Excel Password with ZIP Software
This solution is one of the simplest ones, if you want to know how to crack Excel password then you should probably try this out. Basically, you will have to remove password protection flag using ZIP compression tool in this method, below is step by step guide on how you can achieve this:
Step 1: Download and Install ZIP supported compression program like 7-Zip.
Step 2: Open the Excel file using 7-Zip, you can do that by right clicking the file and opening it with 7-Zip program, you will see several files and folders.
Step 3: Now find "xl" folder and right click on "workbook.xml" and select "Edit", this will open the file in notepad or any other editor you have installed.
Step 4: Find and remove this tag completely and close the editor "
<workbookProtection workbookPassword="93AF" lockStructure="1" lockWindows="1"/>".
Step 5: 7-Zip will prompt to replace the existing XML file, select "Yes" to save modified version of Excel file.
Step 6: If you have password protection on worksheet then navigate to xl\worksheets\sheet1.xml and remove the tag "<sheetProtection … > " instead to remove password from worksheet
Step 7: Now open the excel file, your password will be removed.
Solution #2: Crack Excel Password with PassFab for Excel
PassFab for Excel is our recommended solution if you want to know how to cracking Excel password, hands down the best tool available for cracking password decryption. It features three different types of brute force attacks, with correct settings and parameters you can optimize the process greatly.
It also supports multi CPUs for greater performance and works flawlessly for almost all versions of Microsoft Excel files. You can crack, open your workbooks and spreadsheets both with this program, follow the below instructions to do so:
Step 1: Open the program. You will see below interface, Now click "Add" to import to import Excel spreadsheet whose password you want to recover.
Step 2: There are 3 types of attack available, Brute force, Brute force with mask, Brute force with dictionary. Choose the attack type and set parameters accordingly.
Note: Dictionary Attack can be used when you already have a dictionary file, Brute force with Mask attack let you crack the password with whatever you remember, Brute force attack will try all the combinations to unlock the password.
Step 3: Click "Recover", this will initiate brute force attack, it may take time according to password length and complexity.
Step 4: Your password will be cracked once the attack is complete and a window will pop up having the password.
Solution #3: Password Crack in Excel Using VBA Code
As the name suggests, you will be using VBA code for cracking purpose. It is very simple to apply but the only problem to this solution is that, it doesn’t work with latest version of Microsoft Excel. Follow the below instructions carefully to apply this Excel password crack solution:
Step 1: Open your protected worksheet in Microsoft Excel like any normal file
Step 2: Hold down "ALT+F11", it will open Microsoft Visual Basic for Application window interface.
Step 3: Click "Insert>Module" and then paste the below code in the Module Window, this code will be used to unlock the Excel file.
Sub PasswordRecovery()
Dim i As Integer, j As Integer, k As Integer
Dim l As Integer, m As Integer, n As Integer
Dim i1 As Integer, i2 As Integer, i3 As Integer
Dim i4 As Integer, i5 As Integer, i6 As Integer
On Error Resume Next
For i = 65 To 66: For j = 65 To 66: For k = 65 To 66
For l = 65 To 66: For m = 65 To 66: For i1 = 65 To 66
For i2 = 65 To 66: For i3 = 65 To 66: For i4 = 65 To 66
For i5 = 65 To 66: For i6 = 65 To 66: For n = 32 To 126
ActiveSheet.Unprotect Chr(i) & Chr(j) & Chr(k) & _
Chr(l) & Chr(m) & Chr(i1) & Chr(i2) & Chr(i3) & _
Chr(i4) & Chr(i5) & Chr(i6) & Chr(n)
If ActiveSheet.ProtectContents = False Then
MsgBox "One usable password is " & Chr(i) & Chr(j) & _
Chr(k) & Chr(l) & Chr(m) & Chr(i1) & Chr(i2) & _
Chr(i3) & Chr(i4) & Chr(i5) & Chr(i6) & Chr(n)
Exit Sub
End If
Next: Next: Next: Next: Next: Next
Next: Next: Next: Next: Next: Next
End Sub
Step 4: Once pasted, click "F5" to execute this code, prompt screen will appear then click "OK" to close it and your password will be canceled shortly.
Solution #4: Crack Excel Using Free Online Excel Password Cracker
Latest version of Microsoft Excel files can be cracked using brute force attacks, which can take long time depending on password length and complexity. Good thing about using this method is all computations of brute force attack will take place on cloud servers hence in less time password will be cracked. There are number of online services available if you want to do password crack in Excel, follow the below instructions to do so:
Step 1: Visit http://service.password-find.com
Step 2: Click ‘Unprotect Your File" button.
Step 3: Upload your file and click next, your file will be unlocked shortly.
Bottom Line
We have discussed some of the best ways to crack Microsoft Excel passwords, you can try these solutions to workbooks and spreadsheets. In the end, we have also recommended an excellent all in one Excel cracking tool you can use if other methods fail for you.
- Recover Excel File Password to Open
- Remove Excel Restriction Password to Edit
- Unprotect Excel Workbook and Sheet without Password
- Support Microsoft Excel 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010, 2007 and More