How to Fix Runtime Error 1004 in Excel

Four ways to fix runtime error 1004 in Excel:

Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is developed to help users write programs for the Windows operating system. It runs as an internal programming language in Microsoft Office, such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Some users have reported that when running VBA in an Excel chart or trying to generate a Macro in Excel documents, an error message popped up saying: Runtime error 1004. And then they find themselves cannot access the Excel files. If you have the same encounter as these users, this post is the right place for you. You can find both the reasons and the corresponding solutions of this error code on this page.

Runtime Error Details

The error message contains more information than the error code 1004. Generally, follow the error code, you can see a brief description. The most repeated error messages are listed below:

1. Runtime error 1004: Application or object-defined error.
2. Runtime error 1004: Method Ranger of Object Worksheet failed.
3. Runtime error 1004: Copy Method of Worksheet Class failed.

The Reason Why You See Runtime Error 1004 in Excel

If you want to know how to fix runtime error 1004 in Excel properly, you need to understand what leads to this issue. The following are the most prominent reasons.

• Macro Name Error

The Macro you are running is copying the original worksheet to a workbook with a defined name that you did not save and close before running the Macro.

• File Conflict

When opening the VBA Excel file, it gets conflicted with other programs.

• Too Many Legend Entries

The Excel chart contains more legend entries than space available to display the legend entries on the chart.

• Excel File Corruption

Your .xls files got corrupted, infected, or damaged.

How to Fix Runtime Error 1004 in Excel

Although many reasons would cause this Excel error 1004 problem, luckily, some valid methods can help users re-access the files. Let's check them one by one.

Fix 1. Delete the GWXL97.XLA Files

The easiest method to fix the Excel error 1004 is to find and delete the error file.

Step 1. Go to C:\Program Files\MS Office\Office\XLSTART.

Step 2. Find GWXL97.XLA file and delete it.

Step 3. Reopen your Excel file and check if the problem is solved.

Fix 2. Check the Trust Access to the VBA Project Object Model

Another solution you can try is to enable a VBA project trust option in Excel Trust Center. Follow the detailed steps and have a try.

Step 1. Open a blank Excel file and click "Files" on the upper left.

Step 2. Click Option and go to Trust Center.

Step 3. Find and enter the Trust Center Settings.

Step 4. Under Macro Settings, tick the option of "Trust access to the VBA project object model."

Now you can check your Excel file.

Fix 3. Create Another Excel Template

This method could be a little bit complicated, but it's useful and worth trying.

Step 1. Please start a new Excel workbook and make sure there is only one worksheet in it.

Step 2. Format the workbook first and then put the data you need onto it.

Step 3. Tap File > Save As, first enter the file name, and click the unfold arrow in Save as Type column.

Excel 2003: Choose Excel 97-2003 Template.

Excel 2007 or Later: Choose Excel Template.

Step 4. Click "Save" to confirm.

Now you can insert it programmatically by using the following code: Add Type:=path\filename. The file name is the one you set when you create the new Excel template.

Fix 4. Recover Corrupted Excel Files 

If all the above solutions can't help you out, then there is one possibility that the Excel file you want to open is damaged. To fix a damaged Excel file, you can rely on file repair software. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard is a great choice.

With this tool, click the "Scan" button and wait for it to find all the corrupted documents for you, then choose the one you need and click "Recover." That's all you need to do to fix a corrupted Excel or a Word file with EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard.

Download the software and follow the detailed steps below to fix corrupted Excel files.

Step 1. Select a location to start finding corrupted Excel files

Launch EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard, and then scan the corrupted or damaged Excel files.

Step 2.  Scan for the corrupted Excel document

Find the damaged files through the filter, file path, search, etc.

Step 3.  Repair and save the Excel file to a secure location

Double-click the corrupt excel file, and this program will automatically repair corrupted and damaged Excel files. Click "Recover" to save the repaired Excel files to a safe location.

The Bottom Line

After reading, you must have a thorough understanding of how to fix Runtime error 1004. If you can make sure that the Excel file you want to open is valid, then the first three methods would help you out.

Once you got a damaged Excel file, a professional data recovery tool is a wiser choice. It is worth mentioning that, besides corrupted Excel files, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard can help you with virus attack, accidental file deletion, and sudden system crash.