Transferring Your Excel Files to Google Sheets

General
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Microsoft Excel has been the go-to spreadsheet software for ages, but Google Sheets is a fantastic, free alternative that’s super accessible – all you need is an internet connection. While Excel might have more advanced features, Google Sheets shines when it comes to sharing and working together on spreadsheets. If you’re thinking about switching from Excel to Google Workspace, here are a few ways to get your Excel files into Google Sheets.

Method 1: Automatically Converting on Google Drive Upload

If you’ve got a bunch of Excel files to move over, this is the most efficient way. You can set Google Drive to automatically convert any Excel files you upload into Google Sheets format. Here’s how to do it:

  1. Go to Google Drive and log in.
  2. Click the gear icon at the top right and select ‘Settings’.

  1. On the left panel, click ‘General’.

  1. Find the ‘Convert Uploads’ section, check the box that says ‘Convert uploaded files to Google Docs editor format’, and click ‘Done’.

Now, any Excel files you upload to Google Drive will automatically be turned into Google Sheets files.

Method 2: Importing an Excel File Directly into Google Sheets

This method is great if you want to add an Excel file to an existing Google Sheet. Follow these steps:

  1. Open Google Sheets and sign in. Open a blank sheet or an existing one where you want to import the Excel data.

  1. Go to ‘File’ and then click ‘Import’.

  1. Select the ‘Upload’ tab in the Import File dialog.

  1. Drag and drop your Excel file (.xls or .xlsx) into the box or click ‘Select a file from your computer’.

  1. Navigate to your Excel file and click ‘Open’ to import it.

  1. Choose how you want to import the file by selecting an option from the ‘Import location’ dropdown menu. You can choose to replace the current sheet, make a new sheet, or add it to an existing sheet. Then, click on the ‘Import data’ button.

  1. Your Excel file will now be converted and opened in Google Sheets.

Things to Keep in Mind When Converting

While it’s awesome to move Excel files to Google Sheets, there are a few limitations you should know about:

  • Macros won’t work.
  • Password-protected files won’t import.
  • Features like Power Query and Power Pivot aren’t supported.
  • Some Excel formats may not be compatible.
  • Certain Excel formulas might not work perfectly in Google Sheets.

Method 3: Opening Excel Files in Google Drive Then Saving as Sheets

This method is good if you want to have a quick look at the Excel file in Google Sheets first before actually converting it. Here’s how it’s done:

  1. Go to Google Drive. Click ‘New’ at the top left and select ‘File Upload’.

  1. Choose the Excel file you want to upload and click ‘Open’.

  1. Once uploaded, right-click the file, go to ‘Open with’, and choose ‘Google Sheets’.

  1. The file will open in Google Sheets, but it will still be in Excel format initially.

  1. To convert it, go to ‘File’ and select ‘Save as Google Sheets’.

  1. A new Google Sheets file will be created and saved. Any changes made to this new sheet won’t affect the original Excel file.

You can spot the difference between Excel and Google Sheets files by their icons. Excel files have an ‘X’, while Google Sheets files have a cross symbol.

Exporting a Google Sheet Back to Excel

Sometimes, you might need to send a Google Sheet back to someone using Excel. It’s simple to do:

  1. Open the Google Sheet you want to convert. Go to ‘File’, then ‘Download’, and choose ‘Microsoft Excel (.xls)’.

You also have other download options, such as PDF, CSV, or HTML.

  1. In the Save as window, rename the file if necessary, and save it as an Excel file (.xls). Now it’s ready to share!

If you want to convert the file directly from Google Drive, right-click the file and select ‘Download’.

It will automatically be converted to Excel format.