Authoring and Proofing Tools Missing

Question

Authoring and Proofing Tools Missing

Glenn Samson 20

For years I have printed a series of Excel spreadsheets without issue. Inserted images have always printed at high resolution. Recently, printing the same unaltered documents, inserted images have been printing in low resolution and are visibly blurred.

Excel Help and on-line searches have indicated that I may be able to resolve the issue using the "Authoring and Proofing Tools" preferences.

Attempting to follow the steps provided in Excel Help I've discovered that the "Authoring and Proofing Tools" preferences are missing in my version of Excel (Version 16.108 (26041219)).

How can I resolve this issue and get the images in these documents to print in high resolution again.

Bob Jones AKA CyberTaz MVP 435K Reputation points

2026-04-18T01:08:21.35+00:00

The first Category in the Mac Excel Preferences dialog simply is called Authoring. It is comparable to the Authoring & Proofing Category found shown in Word but isn't identical due to the different needs of the respective programs. Accordingly, the Preferences in each group vary even though the name of the group is the same.

In the File> Reduce File Size menu there is a compression setting for Picture Quality but it has to do with the default for new insertions & individual images [i.e., how the mage is saved]. It doesn't increase the resolution for display or print quality. The default setting is High Fidelity

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Bob Jones AKA CyberTaz MVP 435K Reputation points

2026-04-18T01:08:21.35+00:00

The first Category in the Mac Excel Preferences dialog simply is called Authoring. It is comparable to the Authoring & Proofing Category found shown in Word but isn't identical due to the different needs of the respective programs. Accordingly, the Preferences in each group vary even though the name of the group is the same.

In the File> Reduce File Size menu there is a compression setting for Picture Quality but it has to do with the default for new insertions & individual images [i.e., how the mage is saved]. It doesn't increase the resolution for display or print quality. The default setting is High Fidelity

Answer 1

Make sure the OS is fully updated as well. Printing is a service of the print subsystem in conjunction with the printer's driver software. Mac Excel has no control over print quality unless the target printer supports Draft Quality as described in the Comment I directed to Katerina-N.

The specific setting may vary depending on the specific OS & printer but there should be something similar to this: User's image

Additionally:

If these files are in the legacy .xls or early .xlsx file type use Save As to create new copies in the contemporary .xlsx file type
Make sure the most current print driver is installed as per the mfr's support site for your model.
Avoid the use of AirPrint if you can.

Answer 2

Jim G 134K MVP Volunteer Moderator

I forgot to insert the screen shot, sorry.

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Answer 3

Jim G 134K MVP Volunteer Moderator

I noticed this past week or so that my Print dialog has changed. Perhaps yours did, too. Mine used to look like Bob's Print dialog. Now it looks like this screen shot. Now the Print quality setting is under the submenu Print Settings in the Print dialog.

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Answer 4

Hello Glenn Samson,

You don’t actually need “Authoring and Proofing Tools” to fix blurry printed pictures in Excel for Mac. That preference pane is not present in your Excel build, and a lot of online “fixes” you found are Windows-only (for example, “File > Options > Advanced > Image Size and Quality”), which doesn’t apply to Excel for Mac.

My suggestion for you:

Force high print DPI from Excel (most important)

Open the workbook in Excel.
Go to Page Layout.
In Page Setup, open the dialog launcher (small arrow/launcher in the corner of the Page Setup group).
On the Page tab, set Print quality to the highest DPI available for your printer.
Go to the Sheet tab and make sure Draft quality is NOT selected.
Print again.

This is the most direct “Excel controls the printer output quality” setting Microsoft documents for Excel printing quality.

Confirm the issue is Excel-only vs printer/driver

Print the same image from another app (Preview/Word) to the same printer.
If other apps print sharp but Excel doesn’t, stay focused on Excel/Page Setup and PDF workflow.
If other apps are also blurry, it’s likely printer driver / printer quality setting.

(The general printing troubleshooting starts with “try another app/file” to isolate whether it’s app-specific.)
3) If you “Print to PDF” first, choose the print-optimized option (if shown)

It has been rolling/testing changes in Excel for Mac PDF output (options like“best for printing” vs“best for electronic distribution”). If your Print/Export workflow shows that choice, pick best for printing and then print the PDF.

Update Excel (because image blurring has been fixed in past builds)

Excel for Mac has had fixes related to image blurring (e.g., “Text in images was becoming blurrier than expected…”), so updating is a real lever when the behavior “changed recently.” On Mac, the documented update path is any Office app > Help > Check for updates.

If it’s still blurry after Step 1

Two practical isolation/workaround options that have helped others in Mac Excel “blurry PDF/print” scenarios:

Try printing without Acrobat in the middle (if you’re using it): some users report there are “no such controls” through Acrobat export and that only “pasting” yielded usable results.
Test a different printer/driver (or print to a different destination) because Excel is “printer‑intensive,” and print output can hinge on the default printer driver behavior.

Official references (so you can compare screens)

I hope this will help with your situation. Please feel free to reach back if you have further update or more questions.

Best Regards,

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Bob Jones AKA CyberTaz MVP 435K Reputation points

2026-04-18T00:24:29.25+00:00

Have you actually tried to follow your own instructions? There are no dialog launchers in Mac office Ribbon UIs. Further, Draft Quality is effective only if the target printer supports it. In that case the setting should be made in the Print dialog as well. Most modern printers do not offer that mode but if they do it may be called Draft, Economy, Fast or something similar.
Glenn Samson 20 Reputation points

2026-04-18T23:24:11.25+00:00

Thanks for the quick replies, everyone.

CyberTaz's answer on my original query and his subsequent comment have placed me on the right track.
Katerina-N 8,905 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-04-19T22:09:22.1266667+00:00

Hello Glenn Samson,

Thank you to let me know. That's my pleasure to help you out. Please feel free to reach me if you need any further assistance.

Have a nice day!

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Authoring and Proofing Tools Missing

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