In Excel 2003, you could create a custom toolbar, and attach it to a specific workbook. I didn't use that feature, but occasionally I receive a workbook where someone has attached a toolbar.

Custom Toolbars in Excel 2007

The Ribbon was introduced in Excel 2007, to replace the Excel toolbars. It has an Add-Ins tab, where custom toolbars and menu commands will appear.

If you open an Excel 2003 workbook that has an attached custom toolbar, that custom toolbar's tools will appear on the Add-Ins tab in the Ribbon. Things can get pretty messy, especially if those custom toolbars had more than a few buttons.

Here's just a small section of my Add-Ins tab, after opening a client's workbook.

Delete a Custom Toolbar from the Ribbon

Unfortunately, those custom toolbars don't automatically disappear when you close the workbook to which they're attached. Nope, they hang around, uninvited, cluttering up the place.

The good news is that you can delete the custom toolbars from the Ribbon, with an easy mouse shortcut.

To delete a custom toolbar from the Ribbon:

• Right-click on one of the custom toolbar's commands
• Click Delete Custom Toolbar

• When the warning message appears, click Yes, to confirm that you want to delete the custom toolbar.

And don't worry -- you're not deleting the toolbar from the workbook. It will turn up again, whether you want it or not, the next time you open that workbook.

Watch the Remove Custom Toolbars Video

This Excel video tutorial will show you how to remove any custom toolbars from the Ribbon, by using a mouse shortcut.

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