Microsoft Excel Alternatives

Introduction

Spreadsheets are the most basic and essential tool for every business to store the data and records. Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet developed by Microsoft company that is to organize, manage, analyze, forecast and visualize data. It was initially released for Windows in 1987 and later it became available for other operating systems like macOS, Android, and iOS. Microsoft Excel comes as a part of Microsoft Office.

But Excel is used only on individual systems therefore simultaneous editing of the sheets is not possible. It is challenging for Microsoft Excel users to do collaborative editing in real-time and access their documents from various locations.

Here we are going to discuss several alternatives to Microsoft Excel that can be used to accomplish the office tasks even more efficiently than Microsoft Excel.

1. Google Sheets

   It is probably the most popular Excel alternative that is used by many companies to do their office work where spreadsheets are required. It has much similar functionality to Excel. It is an online spreadsheet processor that is free to everyone with a Google account. In the Google sheet, the file is automatically saved and stored in Google drive. It is a cloud-based version of spreadsheets that allows you to do collaborative editing in real-time. Google Sheets also support Excel sheets so you can easily open and edit Excel spreadsheets in Google sheets. Further, you can also convert Google files to Excel Sheets and vice versa.

2. Excel Online

   Microsoft Office-365 is provided as a complete suite of free online applications with a Microsoft account. Some of the features can’t be used in free Excel online yet it allows us to open and view all files created in Microsft Excel. Like other cloud applications, this app can be accessed from anywhere with an internet connection. It also provides real-time collaboration so that multiple users can access the file simultaneously. Worksheets can be downloaded to work offline.

3. Zoho Sheet

   Zoho sheet is another cloud-based free alternative to Microsoft Excel that provides operational comfort for small to medium-sized businesses. It empowers productivity and enables working in an Excel-like environment. The functionality provided by this application is much familiar to Excel users. The files can be easily switched between .xlsx, .xls, .csv, and .ods without facing any problem. Charts and pivot tables are also supported by this application. It allows the whole team to work together in a shared document. The document can be accessed anytime even from mobile devices and collaborate with your team in real-time.

4. Apache OpenOffice(Calc)

   Apache OpenOffice is an open-source office software suite that runs perfectly on Windows, Mac OSX, and Linux. Apache OpenOffice is a complete set of applications like word processing(Writer), spreadsheets(Calc), presentations(Impress), graphics, databases, and more. Calc, the alternative to Excel in Apache OpenOffice, can perform very well as a data analysis tool for smaller datasets. Being a desktop application, it can be downloaded to a computer and doesn’t require any internet connection to use. But there is one drawback of this application that it is not a cloud-based application. It means real-time collaboration is not supported by this.

5. Numbers For Mac

   Apple made an alternative to Microsoft Excel and named it Numbers (spreadsheet). It was developed by Apple Inc. in 2007 as part of the iWork productivity suite along with Keynote and Pages. Initially, this application was available only for MacBooks and later it was updated to support iPhones and iPods. Numbers for Mac arrives with pre-built templates. It also supports a broad range of data analysis capabilities. Being an iPhone user, you can easily access this application on your iPhone and can collaborate the documents with your team. Documents in this application can be easily saved in Excel file formats.

6. LibreOffice Calc

   LibreOffice is a free office suite and has many similar features like the Apache OpenOffice. It includes an Excel alternative known as LibreOffice Calc. It was initially introduced in 2010 from the original Openoffice.org. Similar to the OpenOffice, LibreOffice Calc lacks cloud support and real-time collaboration.

   LibreOffice has more functions than Excel. It can compare two separate spreadsheet files and has more cell formatting options. LibreOffice Calc can even handle imports of legacy spreadsheets from retired applications like Microsoft Works, Lotus 1-2-3, BeagleWorks, Claris Resolve, etc. All these applications were formerly available on Windows and macOS. The Excel features such as pivot tables and text to columns are offered by LibreOffice Calc but it lacks the extensive formatting ability.

Along with the mentioned spreadsheet applications, there is a large variety of spreadsheets that can be used as an alternative to Excel. For example; Scoro, EtherCalc, Siag, Calligra Sheets, Spread32, Sheetster, and many others. Thus a user can choose any option including Microsoft Excel according to his/her requirements.

When was Microsoft Excel released initially?

Microsoft Excel was initially released for Windows in 1987 and later it became available for other operating systems like macOS, Android, and iOS. Microsoft Excel comes as a part of Microsoft Office.

What is Google Sheets?

Google sheets is an online spreadsheet processor that is free to everyone with a Google account. In Google Sheets, the file is automatically saved and stored in Google drive.

What is Zoho Sheet?

Zoho sheet is another cloud-based free alternative to Microsoft Excel that provides operational comfort for small to medium-sized businesses. It empowers productivity and enables working in an Excel-like environment.

What is Numbers For Mac?

Apple made an alternative to Microsoft Excel and named it Numbers (spreadsheet). It was developed by Apple Inc. in 2007 as part of the iWork productivity suite along with Keynote and Pages. Initially, this application was available only for MacBooks and later it was updated to support iPhones and iPods.

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