First Published 9 Aug 2026	Last Updated 29 Aug 2026	Difficulty level :   Easy

Zooming . . . It's Getting Better All the Time!     Better . . . Better . . . BETTER!     (with apologies to the Beatles)

Following several requests from both current and former MVPs, various changes have been made to the zooming feature at both application level and for individual forms.

Taken together, these provide a series of options to give users greater control over how the zooming feature is implemented in Access apps and for each form.



Disable Zoom Option (Application Level)

NEW - Beta Channel version 2608 20326.20000 (released 2026-07-29) and Current Channel Preview version 2608 20326.20034 (released 2026-08-03).

Users can now disable the Zoom feature at the application level from Access Options | Current Database:

Zooming enabled (default)	Zooming disabled

When the Disable Zoom checkbox is selected, the database must be restarted for this change to take effect.
The Zoom ribbon menu is then disabled, the zoom slider is removed from the status bar, zooming keyboard shortcuts and mouse wheel actions do not work. Zooming code also has no effect when disabled.

NOTE:   If zooming is disabled when the default zoom value <> 100%, the zoom value reverts to 100% so no zooming occurs.

Zooming can also be disabled using code:

Application.SetOption "Disable Zoom", True

To re-enable zooming in code, set the property False.


Allow Zooming (Form Property)

NEW - Beta Channel version 2609 20403.20000 released 2026-08-06

Zooming can now also be disabled for individual forms. By default, the boolean AllowZooming property is True.


NOTE:   The property has no effect if zooming is disabled at the application level.

When the form is open in design view, the property can also be set in code using the form Properties collection. For example:

DoCmd.OpenForm "Form1", acDesign
Forms!Form1.Properties("AllowZooming") = False
DoCmd.Close acForm, "Form1", acSaveYes

NOTE:   Subforms take on the AllowZooming value of their parent form.


Zoom Resizes Window (Form Property)

NEW - Beta Channel version 2609 20403.20000 released 2026-08-06

This property provides the missing functionality I have been asking for since the zooming feature was first rolled out.


By default, the boolean ZoomResizesWindow property is False. With this setting, the form dimensions do not change when the form contents are zoomed.

This can result in the controls only occupying a small part of the form at low zoom values. Worse still, some controls may be cut off or not visible when zoomed above 100%.
Scroll bars are ESSENTIAL here.

Zoom level = 100%	Zoom level = 80% Zoom Resizes Window = False	Zoom level = 120% Zoom Resizes Window = False

However, when the property is set True, the form dimensions are also changed proportionately when the form contents are zoomed.
The result is that the form controls are all completely visible no matter what zoom level is used.

Zoom level = 80% Zoom Resizes Window = True	Zoom level = 120% Zoom Resizes Window = True

Once again, when the form is open in design view, the property can also be set in code using the form Properties collection. For example:

DoCmd.OpenForm "Form2", acDesign
Forms!Form2.Properties("ZoomResizesWindow") = True
DoCmd.Close acForm, "Form2", acSaveYes

For those who use standard forms and tabbed documents display, this property provides little real benefit.
However, this is a huge enhancement for all users who prefer overlapping windows display and when using popup forms.

In fact, for me this is such a massive improvement that I immediately created a procedure to loop through all forms and set the ZoomResizesWindow property for each form:

Public Function SetZoomResizesWindowAllForms(Optional blnState As Boolean = True)
    Dim f As String
    Dim i As Long

    ' Loop through all forms in the project
    For i = 0 To CurrentProject.AllForms.Count - 1
        f = CurrentProject.AllForms(i).Name

        ' Open each form in Design View
        DoCmd.OpenForm f, acDesign, , , , acHidden

        ' Set the new property
        Forms(f).Properties("ZoomResizesWindow") = blnState

        ' Save and close
        DoCmd.Close acForm, f, acSaveYes
    Next i

    MsgBox "ZoomResizesWindow property has been set " & blnState & " for all forms", _
        vbInformation, "Zoom Resizes Window  = " & blnState
End Function

USAGE:
To set the property True for all forms: SetZoomResizesWindowAllForms or SetZoomResizesWindowAllForms True
To reset the property False for all forms: SetZoomResizesWindowAllForms False


NOTE:
There is currently an issue when ZoomResizesWindow = True AND Default Zoom <>100%
The result is that the form dimensions are zoomed twice causing unwanted side effects when the form is opened.

Default Zoom = 80% Zoom Resizes Window = True	Default Zoom = 120% Zoom Resizes Window = True

Additional zooming after opening the form further exacerbates the issue.

I have reported this issue to the Access team, who have confirmed that it will be fixed in the next few weeks - before the property is rolled out to the Current Channel.

I will update this article when that happens. Until then, a workaround is to only set the ZoomResizesWindow property True when the Default Zoom = 100%.
Alternatively, use code to resize the form with zoom which will work with any default zoom value. Example code is provided in the previous article in this series.



Known Issues

I reported two issues to the Access team on 2026-08-17. Both issues were brought to my attention by Xevi Batlle.

1.   Zoom Resizes Window property issues with subforms

      When the Zoom resizes window property is set True, issues occur after a reset from very large or very small zoom values. Only affects Beta Channel version 2609.

      No problems are observed when the initial zoom is in the range 25% to 200%.


      However, when a form with subform is zoomed well above 200% and back to 100%, both the height and width of the main form are too small.
      For example, after resetting to 100% from an initial zoom = 500%


      The larger the original zoom, the more pronounced the effect. The next screenshot is after resetting to 100% from 1000% zoom.


      Similarly, if zoomed out to 10% and back to 100%, the height is OK but the form is too wide.


2.   Popup & datasheet subform zooming issues

      Zooming using Ctrl+Mousewheel method does not work when the cursor is over a datasheet subform or the subform has focus. This affects all 365 channels with zooming.

      This causes particular issues for tablet PCs and some laptops where zooming using Ctrl+Alt+Plus/Minus is disabled (therefore not available) using an on-screen keyboard.


      NOTE: Zooming using Ctrl+Mousewheel works correctly using continuous subforms (version 2608 or later)


UPDATE 2026-08-18: The Access team have already fixed both issues. The fixes will be released to version 2609 in the near future.



Further Fine Tuning

Another much-requested zooming feature is the ability to zoom a form when it is resized by dragging the form borders.
I created a similar "stretcher-shrinker" feature as part of my Automatic Form Resizing code. See Example Form 4 in the example app supplied with that article.

It is hoped that this functionality will be added later in Stage 3 of the Zooming feature (along with zooming in both design view and layout view).

In the meantime, fellow Access developer, Xevi Batlle, has created an example app with class module code which provides all the following functionality:
•   precisely set zoom values using combo boxes on the form
•   resize the form regardless of the method used to change its zoom - using the slider, keyboard, mouse, ribbon etc.
•   zoom the form controls when a form is resized using the mouse
•   raises a custom form event, ZoomChanged, when the zoom percentage is changed

Zoom Level Combo	Zoom Offset Combo

Zoom 85% using Offset	Zoom 122% by resizing form

With Xevi's permission, the example app and reusable class module code is available to download below.



Download

Click to download Xevi's example app with class module code:  Test Zoom v11.1 with Class Module Code      ACCDB file     Approx 0.6 MB (zipped)

NOTE: The example app requires Access 365 version 2609 build 20403.20000 or later

As with all files downloaded from the internet, you will need to first Unblock downloaded files by removing the Mark of the Web

Then unzip the file and either make it a trusted document or (preferably) save it in a trusted location



Further Reading

See my article Size to Fit Form

The Size to Fit Form feature can provide similar functionality to the Zoom Resizes Window property when used in conjunction with Zooming. Size to Fit Form is already available in all channels.



Feedback

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Colin Riddington	Mendip Data Systems	Last Updated 29 Aug 2026

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