Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets are two of the most popular spreadsheet solutions on the market. Although Google Sheets is widely appreciated for its ease of use and real-time collaboration features, Excel remains the preferred choice for professionals and businesses that require robust features, versatility, and superior performance. From an extensive template library to handling complex calculations, Excel consistently outperformed its web-based counterpart.
Here are the top reasons why Excel continues to set the standard and beats Sheets when it comes to tackling important spreadsheet tasks.
7 Extensive template library
A layout for every situation
Although both Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets have a template library, the former's is far superior. Microsoft offers hundreds of high-quality Excel templates to choose from, neatly organized into different categories, making it easier for anyone to find a relevant option.
Whether you want to create a planner, weekly task plan, home remodeling plan, event schedule, vacation budget planning, or even a family tree with photos, there is a template for every situation. You can also find powerful third-party Excel templates online.
Suffice it to say that Microsoft has completely outshone Google in this critical area.
6 Power and performance
Excel can do everything
Be it thousands of rows or dozens of interactive charts, Microsoft Excel handles data sets of any size without a hitch. Finally, it's an offline-first solution with native apps on the desktop that can perform extensive data analysis and complex calculations without a hitch. Excel's superior performance should be the main reason to choose it over Sheets. In comparison, Google Sheets can feel slow when you're working with a huge database.
Whether you're crunching numbers for a Fortune 500 company or just need a spreadsheet that can handle heavy workloads, Excel's robust features give you the confidence to tackle any task like a pro.
5 Better data analysis and visualization
This is where Power Pivot and Power Query come in
Whether you want to manipulate data, analyze patterns, or visualize different types of charts, Excel gets the job done easily. For example, it includes Power Pivot and Power Query, which fundamentally change the way you work with data from multiple sources.
Power Query makes it easy to import, clean, and transform data, while Power Pivot lets you easily develop advanced data models, perform complex calculations, and create interactive reports.
Excel also has many built-in advanced tools, whereas in Google Sheets you have to rely on third-party add-ons to run the same tools. For example, you can run advanced statistical tests like t-tests, z-tests, and ANOVAs only from the Data tab. In Google Sheets, you have to download a third-party add-on (XLMiner Analysis Tool). Many third-party tools are often outdated and do not work as expected, causing frustration among users.
4 Special apps and keyboard shortcuts
We offer you the best tools for your work
Microsoft offers desktop Excel apps for Windows and Mac, while Google Sheets is a purely web-based solution. While these web apps work fine, nothing beats the user experience of a dedicated app. Additionally, Google Sheets works best only with the company's Google Chrome browser. If you're using a different browser, such as Edge, Arc, or Vivaldi, performance may vary.
Microsoft Excel also has an extensive list of useful keyboard shortcuts. Google Sheets also supports keyboard shortcuts, but since it's a web solution, some of them may interfere with your preferred browser.
3 Integrated support for Python
Take Excel to the next level
With the recent update, Microsoft has officially added support for Python in Excel. The software uses a core set of Python libraries from Anaconda and you can run Python codes, create charts, perform advanced data analysis, overview data with charts, and much more with appropriate commands.
You also have the flexibility to import more libraries like Astropy, Faker, IPython, NumPy, Pandas, and Prince. To enable the same feature in Google Sheets, you will need a third-party extension, which is likely not as smooth as Excel. If you are an experienced Excel user, we highly recommend you to learn basic Python skills for data analysis in Excel.
2 Security and control
Keep your hard work confidential and secure
Since Microsoft Excel uses OneDrive cloud storage by default, you have a lot of security and privacy options when sharing spreadsheets with other team members. You can generate a password-protected link and even insert an expiration date to keep prying eyes away from your confidential files. This option can be very handy if you want to share private data like quarterly results, sales data, company forecast details, and more.
Google Sheets uses Google Drive by default, and the company's cloud solution doesn't offer the same security features as OneDrive.
1 Integration with Microsoft products
File Explorer is even more useful
Source: Microsoft
Microsoft Excel is a breeze for Windows users. Since OneDrive is the default cloud storage on Windows, you can easily access your Excel files right from the File Explorer menu. But the best part is Microsoft 365's integration with the Windows Start menu, giving you instant access to your most recently used Microsoft 365 files, such as spreadsheets.
With Google Sheets, you need to open your desktop browser and go to Sheets to access your spreadsheet library.
Process numbers like a pro
It's obvious why Excel is the choice for professionals who demand exceptional performance, a rich template library, and flexibility without compromise. Google Sheets does score highly in some areas, but our vote goes to Microsoft's solution in this battle.
In addition to crunching numbers, you can also use Excel to plan and manage projects. And thanks to the best project management templates, you don't even have to start with a blank spreadsheet.