How To Lock Cells In Google Sheets

Google sheets is one of the features on Gmail that allows you to collaborate with other people. You can share documents with others and even input messages such as suggested edits on a sheet.

But sometimes, you want to hide some information or prevent people from making changes on your sheet. You can do that by locking the cells with important information and leaving the rest of the document open.

Locking cells on google sheets is as easy as selecting them, right-clicking, and choosing “protect range” from the pop-up menu. You must type the location of the protected cells into the description box under the Protected sheets and ranges section. Finish locking the cells by specifying yourself as the only one with editing permission in the Range editing permission box.

Advantages of Locking Cells in Google Sheets

Locking cells in google sheets allows you to protect sensitive information from people who have access to the whole document. You can also prevent people from changing data on the document.

Google’s lock cell option is the best way to protect classified information on a sheet, either fully or partially. If different people make contributions to a google sheet, locking cells prevents them from tampering with each other’s information.

However, you can only use the lock cell feature on your PC. It is not available on iOS and Android devices.

If you don’t know how to lock cells on google sheets, here are instructions on how to do it.

How to Protect Information on a Spreadsheet by Using the Lock Cells Option

  • Right-click on the selected cells and choose the “Protect Range” option on the pop-up menu.
  • If the option does not appear on the pop-up menu, click on “view more row actions” and “protect range.”
  • A box titled “Protected sheets & ranges” will pop up. Write a description of the selected cells, such as your name.
  • Check if the range address is correct under the range tab, then click “set permissions.”
  • A range editing permission box will pop up. Click on “Restrict who can edit this range” and pick between “only you” or “custom.”
  •  If you are the only one allowed to edit the protected cells, choose “only you” and click done.
  • However, if you want to give some people editing permission, choose “custom,” specify their email addresses, and then click “done”.

You’ve now locked cells in your Google sheets that contain sensitive information you may not want others to see.

Conclusion:

Now you know how to lock cells in a google sheets document. But it’s important to note that this is not a security measure.

Even if the people you share the doc with do not edit it, they will still view its contents. They may also copy the data and paste it somewhere else. Therefore, avoid sharing a google sheet containing any personal information with people you don’t trust.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *