In the Table Options, you should also turn off Autoformat Table.

In some versions of Excel, you may have to enable selection (From the
Pivot toolbar, choose PivotTableSelect, and click on Enable Selection)

Before formatting cells, use the selection feature to select the cells.
For example, move the pointer to the top of a column in the pivot table
(just above the column's heading cell). When the black arrow appears
(like the one that appears when the pointer is over a column button),
click to select the column in the pivot table. Then apply the formatting.


If that doesn't work, you could record a macro as you refresh and
reformat the pivot table. Then, run that when you want to update.


Kaz wrote:
When I refresh a pivot table the columns resize. How can I stop this?
I have tried preserving formatting but it doesn't help.


--
Debra Dalgleish
Excel FAQ, Tips & Book List
http://www.contextures.com/tiptech.html