How do you get rid of the floating Copilot icon that likes to float over the lower right hand side of an Excel Spreadsheet?

KarlBirch-1179 40

I don't find any usefulness in Copilot as it has lead me astray multiple times. How do I remove the floating icon that hangs out on my spreadsheets in the lower left hand corners? It has become an intolerable annoyance.

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Tamara-Hu 17,960 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi @KarlBirch-1179 and everyone.

I completely understand how this behavior can be frustrating, especially when it impacts the way you expect the product to work or fit into your workflow. Thank you for taking the time to share your experience, it’s truly valuable.

At the moment, this behavior is part of the product’s current built-in design and is not considered a bug. I understand this may be unexpected or could lead to some confusion, especially if it differs from what you were hoping to see. I’m sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused.

If you’d like to see improvements or changes in how this works, the most effective step is to share your feedback directly with the product team, using my previous answer. They will carefully review user feedback to better understand real-world needs, and your input can play an important role in shaping future updates, design enhancements, or official guidance.

Your voice genuinely helps influence the direction of the product, so I strongly encourage you to submit feedback when possible.

KarlBirch-1179 40 Reputation points

2026-05-18T15:37:49.7566667+00:00

Thanks Tamara-Hu. It is a bug and one that should have a can of bug spray unloaded on it as well as on the product manager of Excel and CoPilot. I suspect some clever hackers will come up with a solution in the future to rid the infestation. Thank you again for your time and efforts.

6 additional answers

AI answer

2026-05-11T19:00:04.29+00:00
To remove or disable the Copilot experience in Excel and stop the floating Copilot UI from appearing, turn off Copilot for Excel on that device using the in-app setting.

On Windows Excel:

Open Excel.

Go to File > Options > Copilot.

Clear the Enable Copilot checkbox.

Select OK, then close and restart Excel.

On Mac Excel:

Open Excel.

From the Excel menu, go to Preferences > Authoring and Proofing Tools > Copilot.

Clear the Enable Copilot checkbox.

Close and restart Excel.

Notes:

The Enable Copilot checkbox is per app and per device. If Excel is used on multiple devices, repeat these steps on each device.

If the checkbox is not available yet in Excel on that device, Copilot can only be turned off by changing account privacy settings as described in the same article.

Removing the Copilot icon from the ribbon alone does not turn Copilot off; the feature remains available through other entry points, so use the Enable Copilot checkbox instead.

References:

Turn off Copilot in Microsoft 365 apps

Frequently asked questions about Copilot in Excel
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