How to Remove Background From Images in Excel (2 Easy Step-By-Step Methods)

If you're working with images in Excel, it's often necessary to remove the background to make the image look more professional and polished. Fortunately, you don't need any special software to do this. Excel has built-in tools that make it easy to remove backgrounds from pictures. In this article, we'll walk you through two step-by-step methods to clear backgrounds from images in Excel.

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Method 1: Clearing image backgrounds in Excel using the ‘Remove Background’ function

Step 1: Insert the Picture

Learn how to easily add pictures in Excel here : How to Insert Images in Excel (Concise How-To Manual)

Step 2: Select the Image in Excel

Double-click on the image to select it. When you do this, you'll see a new tab called ‘Picture Format’ appear on the Excel Toolbar.

Step 3: Remove the Background

On the ‘Picture Format’ tab, click on the ‘Remove Background’ option. Excel will automatically try to remove the background from the image. You'll see a magenta highlight appear over the parts of the picture that Excel auto-detects as part of the background.

Step 4: Refine the Background Selection

Excel doesn't always detect the image background accurately, so you may need to refine the selection.

Use the ‘Mark Areas to Keep’ option to select parts of the image detected by Excel as the background that you wish to retain.

Use the ‘Mark Areas to Remove’ option to select parts of the image not detected by Excel as the background that you wish to remove.

Tip: You can use the zoom slider to zoom in on the picture to make it easier to select the correct areas.

Step 5: Preview the Result

Once you're happy with your background selection in Excel, click on the ‘Keep Changes’ button to remove the background. Excel will remove the background from the picture and show you a preview of the result.

Step 6: Save the Image (Optional Step)

If you're happy with the result, save the image by right-clicking on it and selecting the ‘Save as Picture’ option. You can then choose the file type and location to save the picture.

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Method 2: Using the ‘Set Transparent Color’ option to remove background from pictures in Excel

In case your image has a clearly distinguishable background color, follow the below method which is much faster and easier than method 1 described above.

Step 1:

Insert the Picture - How to Insert Images in Excel (Concise How-To Manual)

Step 2:

Double-click on the image to select it. When you do this, you'll see a new tab called ‘Picture Format’ appear on the Excel Toolbar.

Step 3:

Click on the ‘Color’ option and then select ‘Set Transparent Color’

Step 4:

The cursor turns into a pen-like icon, then click on the color (background in this case) you wish to make transparent.

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And that's it! With just a few clicks, you can remove the background from images in Excel. This is a handy tool to have when you're working with images and want to make them look more professional. Give it a try the next time you need to work with images in Excel.