Last Updated on August 30, 2026
Microsoft Excel is the most popular spreadsheet program in use today and is part of the Microsoft Office suite of programs that can be used on your desktop computer as well as online with the web versions of the Office apps. It is used by large corporations as well as by the average home user. Excel in general can be a complex program but when you start receiving errors when opening and working on your spreadsheets, then these can be hard to figure out.
One common problem that you may encounter when opening an Excel workbook is an error that says “There are one or more circular references where a formula refers to its own cell either directly or indirectly. This might cause them to calculate incorrectly.” This message does not give you any real details about where the problem is or how to fix it. In this article, we will be showing you how to fix the Microsoft Excel circular references formula error.
Although Excel does attempt to warn you when a circular reference exists, the built‑in message is often more confusing than helpful. It doesn’t highlight the exact cells involved or explain how the loop was created. This can leave you guessing, especially in large or inherited spreadsheets with many interconnected formulas. Understanding how Excel detects these references makes it much easier to isolate the problem and correct the formulas without breaking the rest of your workbook.
Using the Formula Auditing Tools
1. Open the Formula Tab
One thing you might try to see if you can find out what is causing this circular reference error is to go to the main ribbon. Click directly on the Formula tab located at the top of your Excel window. This section houses all the advanced calculation and troubleshooting utilities.
2. Access Error Checking
Next, look for the Formula Auditing group on the right side of the ribbon menu. Click on the Error Checking button to launch the automated diagnostic tool. This initiates a scan of your entire active worksheet.
3. Interpret the Basic Scan Results
If you run the standard error checking in Excel, it often fails to pinpoint the exact loop. There is a good chance that it will simply say “The error check is complete for the entire sheet” and stop. It will not give you a direct answer to your problem.
Locating and Fixing the Exact Cell
1. Select the Circular References Tool
What you can try instead is to click the small arrow next to the Error Checking button. Choose the Circular References selection from the drop-down menu that appears. It should immediately show you the exact cell address that contains the broken formula.
2. Analyze the Broken Formula
Then you can click on the cell that has the error and try to figure out what is causing it. As you can see in our specific example image below, the current formula is =SUM(B3:B17). The problem is that cell B17 actually contains the total for column B.
3. Apply the Correct Cell Range
The total cell should absolutely not be included inside its own addition formula. Doing so creates an infinite calculation loop. The correct formula should be updated to =SUM(B3:B16) to exclude the final cell.
4. Save and Verify the Fix
After you change the formula to the correct values, hit Enter to apply the new calculation. The cell will update with the accurate sum immediately. You will not get the circular reference formula error the next time you open the Excel workbook.
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