Here are all the new features Microsoft added to Excel in September 2024

Key findings

  • The Copilot chatbot is now generally available for Excel on Windows, Mac, and the web.
  • Excel for Windows users can now use Python in Excel for advanced analysis with Copilot.
  • New TRIMRANGE function and Accessibility Assistant added to Excel for Microsoft 365 Insiders.



Microsoft doesn't release new Windows Insider builds every week, and we don't get new features with every build, either. But when it comes to Microsoft 365 apps, the company seems to be more focused on adding and highlighting new features every month. And now, as we near the end of September, the software giant has unveiled all the changes it's made to one of its widely used Microsoft 365 apps: Microsoft Excel.


What's new in Excel for Windows, Mac and the web

In the middle of the month, Microsoft announced that Copilot was generally available for Excel, Mac, and web clients, so you can work faster and be more productive. For example, you can ask the AI ​​tool to “highlight marketing spend when it's higher than revenue.” Unfortunately, for Mac and Excel web users, Microsoft hasn't added anything other than the general availability of the Copilot chatbot.


What's new in Excel for Windows

Screenshot of Excel in Windows

If you have a Windows PC and are a Microsoft 365 Insider, you can now use Copilot in Excel with Python to perform advanced analytics. To put this in perspective, you can describe in plain English the type of analysis you want to perform, and Copilot will generate the appropriate Python code and insert it into your Excel spreadsheet. If you use Microsoft 365 Business and Enterprise, you can also benefit from Python integration in Excel.


In addition to Copilot in Excel with Python, Microsoft has also introduced a new feature, namely TRIMRANGE and Trim References. As described by Microsoft, the new feature “removes empty rows and columns from the edges of a range.” On the other hand, the new set of Trim References ensures that you can perform these TRIMRANGE functions efficiently. Again, this is only available to Microsoft 365 Insiders.

Another important feature that Microsoft has added to Excel is the Accessibility Assistant. As the name suggests, it helps you make content accessible to everyone. It does this by identifying and fixing issues that could make documents inaccessible to people with disabilities. According to Microsoft, this is one of the most requested features.


More useful Microsoft 365 features coming soon

Unlike Windows 11, we know well in advance what Microsoft 365 features the company is working on. If you're an Excel user, keep an eye out for our weekly Microsoft Roadmap post next Monday to see what new features the company plans to roll out next.

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