Excel displays "The picture is too large and will be truncated" when copying/cutting/pasting data in all workbooks

The supported causes and workarounds in the available guidance point to these areas:

1. Check whether multiple Excel instances are involved If the user has more than one Excel process open, copy/paste behavior can change because Excel falls back to Windows clipboard handling instead of Excel’s internal copy engine. That can also affect Paste Special behavior and clipboard-related operations. Open both workbooks in the same Excel instance and retest.
2. Use Safe Mode results to rule out add-ins Since the issue was already reproduced in Safe Mode, an Excel add-in conflict is less likely. Microsoft guidance still identifies add-ins as a common cause of copy/paste problems, but Safe Mode is the correct test and that result narrows the scope.
3. Verify Paste options setting In Excel, go to File > Options > Advanced. Under Cut, copy and paste, make sure Show Paste Options button when content is pasted is enabled.
4. Check for event-driven code clearing the clipboard If VBA or workbook automation is present, the Worksheet_SelectionChange event can clear the clipboard and disable Paste Special behavior. In that case, setting Application.EnableEvents to False is the documented way to prevent that specific event-driven interference while testing.
5. Test outside any third-party-generated workbook scenario Because the problem also occurs in newly created workbooks, that argues against a single corrupt file. Microsoft guidance notes that third-party-generated Excel files can cause feature failures, so reproducing the issue in a brand-new workbook is the right isolation step and supports looking beyond workbook corruption.
6. Review workbook content if the issue is worse in certain files Even when no visible pictures exist, Excel performance and crashes can be affected by hidden objects, excessive styles from repeated copy/paste, large numbers of shapes, invalid defined names, and similar workbook content issues. If some files are worse than others, inspect for those conditions.
7. If automation or parallel Excel processing is used, avoid clipboard-based APIs Microsoft documents crashes and unexpected errors when add-ins or automation components perform clipboard copy/paste across parallel Excel instances. If any reporting tool, macro, or external process is automating Excel, avoid clipboard-based copy/paste where possible and use value array read/write instead.

Based on the completed troubleshooting, the strongest supported next checks are:

• Confirm only one Excel instance is running in Task Manager.
• Start Excel with no workbooks from XLSTART or other startup content loaded, then test with a new blank workbook.
• Check File > Options > Advanced > Cut, copy and paste.
• If macros or workbook events exist, test with events disabled.
• If any automation is generating or manipulating the workbook, stop using clipboard-based operations in parallel Excel sessions.

The available documentation does not identify a known Microsoft 365 Apps issue specifically for the exact message “The picture is too large and will be truncated” across all workbooks, so the supported guidance is limited to general Excel clipboard, Paste Special, add-in, multi-instance, automation, and workbook-content causes.

• You cannot paste any attributes into a workbook in another instance of Excel
• Paste Special option is missing or not working in Microsoft Office
• Excel may crash when running multiple instances that use clipboard functionality programmatically
• Excel not responding, hangs, freezes or stops working