In Excel: paste Sub Macro1() into the VBA editor (Alt + F11 → Insert ▸ Module), press F5 to run, and save as .xlsm to keep the macro.
On this page8
VBA macro: Refresh Pivot Table
Sub Macro1()
' refresh pivot table — replace the body with your steps
Dim ws As Worksheet
Set ws = ActiveSheet
' ... your code here ...
End SubHow to run this macro
- Press Alt + F11 to open the VBA editor.
- Insert > Module.
- Paste the code above.
- Press
F5, or close the editor and run it from Developer > Macros. - Save the file as .xlsm so the macro is kept.
Open Excel and navigate to Developer ▸ Visual Basic (or press Alt + F11).
Select Insert ▸ Module from the menu bar inside the VBA editor.
Copy and paste Sub Macro1() into the Module.
Click anywhere inside the Sub body and press F5 to run.
Close the VBA editor and save the file as .xlsm.
What this does
The Refresh Pivot Table macro lets you refresh pivot table in Excel without repeating the steps by hand. Paste the Sub Macro1() code into the VBA editor (Alt + F11 → Insert ▸ Module) and run it from Developer ▸ Macros or by pressing F5 inside the editor. Once the macro runs, Excel executes every step programmatically — what might take several manual passes through your data completes in a single click. Because the code is stored in the workbook, you can reuse the Refresh Pivot Table macro any time the same task arises without rebuilding the steps from scratch. Most people learn this as a sequence of clicks and forget it by next week; learning it as a pattern instead is what lets you apply it to the next, slightly different version of the problem without starting from scratch. That is the difference this page is trying to make. Treat “excel vba refresh pivot table” as a small repeatable workflow rather than a one-off click you hope to remember next time. Use a small test block before the live file, so any surprise in the affected pivot table shows up while it is still harmless. When this is a ribbon command, the selection matters more than the button: confirm the range, apply the command, then spot-check the output before saving. That turns a data step that keeps your analysis trustworthy into a method you can reuse, explain, and defend when the workbook leaves your screen.
A worked example
Example: a colleague sends you a large dataset and asks you to refresh pivot table before handing it back. Open the VBA editor with Alt + F11, create a new Module, paste the Sub Macro1() code, and click Run (or press F5). Excel calls the Sub, runs through the sheet, and finishes the Refresh Pivot Table task automatically. The whole operation takes seconds regardless of how many rows are involved — and because the macro is deterministic, it will produce the same result every time you run it on the same input. Reach for the Refresh Pivot Table macro whenever refresh pivot table is a task you repeat more than once, involves more than a handful of rows, or needs to be done consistently across multiple workbooks. VBA runs in milliseconds over data that would take minutes by hand, and it never makes the selection mistakes that manual workflows introduce when fatigue sets in. When the result is not what you expected, undo straight away rather than repairing it by hand — undo restores the sheet exactly, while manual fixes tend to leave small inconsistencies behind that surface later.
In Google Sheets
Google Sheets does not run VBA. A macro written for Excel has to be rewritten in Google Apps Script (Extensions ▸ Apps Script), and an .xlsm file converted to Sheets keeps its cells but drops the code. Keep this page bookmarked for the next time the same question comes up. Better still, repeat the steps once in your own workbook — doing it yourself is what turns a copied answer into something you remember. Here is the takeaway for “excel vba refresh pivot table”: follow the steps at the top, check the result on the sheet itself, and keep undo in mind while you experiment. Done once deliberately, it becomes something you do from memory in Excel rather than something you search for again.
Common mistakes
- Saving as .xlsx instead of .xlsm — Excel strips all VBA code when you save in the non-macro-enabled format. Always choose "Excel Macro-Enabled Workbook (.xlsm)" from the Save As dialog.
- Running the macro on the wrong sheet — Sub Macro1() acts on ActiveSheet by default. If you have multiple sheets open, click the correct sheet tab first before pressing Run.
- Macros are disabled — if you see a security warning bar, click Enable Content. If there is no bar at all, set File ▸ Options ▸ Trust Center ▸ Trust Center Settings ▸ Macro Settings to "Disable VBA macros with notification", which is the safe default that still lets you approve a file per workbook. Do not select "Enable all macros": it removes the only warning you get before a hostile workbook executes.
Frequently asked questions
How do I run the Refresh Pivot Table macro?
Press Alt + F11 to open the VBA editor, insert a Module (Insert ▸ Module), paste Sub Macro1() into the code pane, and press F5. Alternatively close the editor and run it from Developer ▸ Macros ▸ select "Macro1" ▸ Run.
Why won't my macro run — macros are disabled?
Excel blocks macros by default for files downloaded from the internet. Click the yellow security bar and choose "Enable Content" — that trusts this one workbook and is all that is normally needed. Leave File ▸ Options ▸ Trust Center ▸ Trust Center Settings ▸ Macro Settings on "Disable VBA macros with notification" rather than switching to "Enable all macros", which Microsoft itself marks not recommended. If the bar is red instead of yellow, the file carries Mark of the Web: close Excel, right-click the file, open Properties and tick Unblock. Also ensure the file is saved as .xlsm, not .xlsx.
Can I undo what the Refresh Pivot Table macro did?
No — VBA actions generally cannot be undone with Ctrl+Z because they bypass Excel's undo stack. Always test Sub Macro1() on a backup copy of the workbook before running it on live data, or add explicit validation logic inside the macro before the destructive step.
Other ways people ask this
People reach this page typing “refresh pivot table excel vba”, “excel vba refresh all” and “excel vba table”, among other phrasings; whichever wording you used, the fix above is the one you want.
Why do people search for this in so many different ways?
Because the same task has many names. “refresh pivot table excel vba”, “excel vba refresh all”, “excel vba table” all point at the one operation explained on this page, which is why they all lead here.