How to Remove Bold Font from a Pivot Table in Excel
When you create a pivot table in Excel, you may notice that key areas—like row labels, subtotal rows, and Grand Total rows—are bolded by default. While this highlights important data, it may not suit all presentation needs.
This guide provides four effective ways to remove bold formatting from pivot tables, helping you control style while maintaining clarity. Each method suits different scenarios—from quick manual tweaks to full automation via VBA.
➤ Remove Bold Font by Unchecking Row / Column Headers
➤ Remove Bold Font by Removing Formatting
➤ Remove Bold Font Using VBA Macro
➤ Note: Excel Formulas Cannot Control Formatting
✅ Method 1: Remove Bold Font by Unchecking Row / Column Headers
This is the easiest and fastest way to remove bold font from pivot table headers.
- Select the pivot table. Click any cell inside it to activate the PivotTable Tools.
- Go to the Design tab under PivotTable Tools.
- Uncheck Row Headers and optionally Column Headers in the PivotTable Style Options group.
⚠️ Limitation: This won't affect subtotal and Grand Total rows. Reapplying a pivot style may reintroduce bold formatting.
Unlock Excel Magic with Kutools AI
- Smart Execution: Perform cell operations, analyze data, and create charts—all driven by simple commands.
- Custom Formulas: Generate tailored formulas to streamline your workflows.
- VBA Coding: Write and implement VBA code effortlessly.
- Formula Interpretation: Understand complex formulas with ease.
- Text Translation: Break language barriers within your spreadsheets.
✅ Method 2: Remove Bold Font by Removing Formatting
To reset your pivot table’s appearance completely, including bold fonts, you can remove its style.
Click anywhere in the pivot table, then:
- Go to the Design tab.
- Click None from the PivotTable Styles gallery (usually the first option).
❌ Not ideal for: Keeping custom shading, fonts, or borders intact.
Note: If you change the PivotTable style later, Excel might reapply bold formats based on the new style.
✅ Method 3: Remove Bold Font Using VBA Macro
This VBA macro lets you remove bold formatting from every cell in the selected pivot table—including headers, subtotals, and totals.
- Press Alt + F11 to open the VBA editor.
- Insert a new module and paste the code below:
Sub RemovePivotBold()
Dim pt As PivotTable
Dim cell As Range
Dim rng As Range
If TypeName(Selection) <> "Range" Then
MsgBox "Please select a cell inside a pivot table.", vbInformation, "Remove Bold Macro"
Exit Sub
End If
On Error Resume Next
Set pt = Selection.PivotTable
On Error GoTo 0
If pt Is Nothing Then
MsgBox "No pivot table found at the selection.", vbInformation, "Remove Bold Macro"
Exit Sub
End If
Set rng = pt.TableRange2
For Each cell In rng
cell.Font.Bold = False
Next cell
MsgBox "Bold formatting removed from the selected pivot table.", vbInformation, "Remove Bold Macro"
End SubTo run: Press Alt + F8, select RemovePivotBold, and click Run.
🚫 Note: Excel Formulas Cannot Control Formatting
Excel formulas are powerful for data calculation and transformation—but they cannot control formatting. This includes bold, italic, color, or borders.
If you want visual control, use one of the methods above. If you want to extract values, formulas are the way to go.
📌 Final Summary
- Quick & Manual: Uncheck Row/Column Headers
- Clean Reset: Apply 'None' Style to Remove All Formatting
- Advanced Control: Use VBA to Clear Bold Everywhere
Store the VBA macro for repeat use—especially if your pivot table refreshes frequently. It’s a time-saver!
Best Office Productivity Tools
Supercharge Your Excel Skills with Kutools for Excel, and Experience Efficiency Like Never Before. Kutools for Excel Offers Over 300 Advanced Features to Boost Productivity and Save Time. Click Here to Get The Feature You Need The Most...
Office Tab Brings Tabbed interface to Office, and Make Your Work Much Easier
- Enable tabbed editing and reading in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Publisher, Access, Visio and Project.
- Open and create multiple documents in new tabs of the same window, rather than in new windows.
- Increases your productivity by 50%, and reduces hundreds of mouse clicks for you every day!
All Kutools add-ins. One installer
Kutools for Office suite bundles add-ins for Excel, Word, Outlook & PowerPoint plus Office Tab Pro, which is ideal for teams working across Office apps.
- All-in-one suite — Excel, Word, Outlook & PowerPoint add-ins + Office Tab Pro
- One installer, one license — set up in minutes (MSI-ready)
- Works better together — streamlined productivity across Office apps
- 30-day full-featured trial — no registration, no credit card
- Best value — save vs buying individual add-in