Ajelix vs Microsoft Excel (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Microsoft Excel: it is second in our ranking of spreadsheet and database tools, and it grades higher too, 3.4 against 2.0.
Checked Oct 5, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Microsoft Excel grades higher on value for money, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Ajelix
AI chat and agents for Excel, Google Sheets and office files
Microsoft Excel
Spreadsheet app sold with Microsoft 365, free in the browser
Which one is for you
Pick Ajelix if
- Fits if you already live in Excel or Google Sheets and want help writing formulas
- Works for teams that want one AI helper across sheets, slides and docs
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you are one person, as Lite is $32 a month yearly and $39 monthly
- Tight if you stay on the free plan, since it allows 10 requests a month
- Skip it if you want a spreadsheet editor, as this sits on top of Excel or Sheets
- Watch out: subscriptions are non-refundable and the plan cards show no free tier
- Watch out: the Enterprise card shows a per-user price on the page but is listed here as custom, so check it before you ask
Pick Microsoft Excel if
- Fits if you need a full desktop spreadsheet on Windows or Mac and will pay $9.99 a month
- Works for analysts who work in PivotTables, Power Query and Python
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want the desktop app without paying, as only the web and phone versions are free
- Not for you if your workbooks run on macros and you work in a browser, where they open but don't run
- Pricey if Excel is the only app you want, since $9.99 a month pays for Word, PowerPoint and Outlook too
- Watch out: Copilot needs a paid plan, has usage limits, and on shared plans works for the subscription owner only
- Watch out: Business Basic has only web and phone Excel, business trials need a card, and Office 2024 gets no upgrade
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAAjelixFair | 3.4GPAMicrosoft ExcelVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DLite is $32 per user a month on yearly billing, against $6 for the cheaper quarter of spreadsheet tools and $12 in the middle. Pro, with the larger models, is $82. | CMicrosoft 365 Personal is $9.99 a month, which is exactly the middle price in this category, so an ordinary deal rather than a good one, although Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, 1 TB of storage and Copilot come along. Office Home 2024 is $179.99 once for one PC or Mac, with no upgrade to the next release. |
| Free plan and trial | CThe FAQ describes a free plan of 10 requests a month, and you would burn through that in an afternoon. The plan cards themselves list no free tier, and no trial is stated. | BExcel for the web is free for one person, with sharing, real-time collaboration and 5 GB of cloud storage, and the free plan covers iOS and Android too. What's missing: some desktop features, and macros that open in a browser but won't run. |
| Features | CChat agents, formula and template generators, and add-ons for Sheets, Excel, Docs, Slides and Forms. It works on files rather than being a spreadsheet, so it needs one of those apps next to it. | AIt covers the whole job and then some things no rival here has: PivotTables with slicers and timelines, Power Query for pulling in and reshaping outside data, Python formulas running pandas and Matplotlib in the grid, co-authoring, templates in over 40 categories, and Copilot on paid plans. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You sign up, install the add-on in Sheets or Excel and learn what to ask it, so there is some setting up. | A4.75 from 1,468,663 App Store ratings, which clears our bar on both counts, and most people have met Excel somewhere already. Templates give you a ready-made start. Its own phone reviewers do grumble that the iPad app leaves out desktop features like data validation. |
| Platforms and integrations | BA web app with Google Sheets, Docs, Slides, Forms and Excel add-ons. No desktop or phone app is listed. | AThe full set: web, Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android, hooked into OneDrive, SharePoint, Power BI, SQL Server and Anaconda. The desktop apps go deepest, and Power Query on Mac and the web is newer than on Windows. |
| Best for | AI help inside Excel and Google Sheets | serious number work on Windows or Mac |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Ajelix and Microsoft Excel. How we grade
Price against what you get
Ajelix starts at $32 a month for each person and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Microsoft Excel starts at $8.33 a month when paid by the year and scores 4.0.
Microsoft Excel scores higher and starts $23.67 a month lower. Of the other spreadsheet and database tools on the chart, 23 score higher than Ajelix for less, and none scores higher than Microsoft Excel for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Ajelix also covers chat assistant and AI agents.
- Microsoft Excel also covers templates.
At a glance
| Ajelix | Microsoft Excel | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $32 per user / month, billed yearly ($39 billed monthly) | $9.99 / month, or $99.99 / year (Microsoft 365 Personal) |
| Free plan | The pricing-page FAQ describes a free plan with 10 requests a month and access to all tools, plus the Excel add-in and Google Sheets add-on. The plan cards themselves list only paid tiers. | Excel for the web is free for 1 person, with sharing, real-time collaboration and 5 GB of cloud storage. Microsoft lists the free plan as working on web, iOS and Android. |
| Free trial | None listed | 1-month free trial of the Microsoft 365 home and business plans; business trials need a credit card. |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | AJELIX SIA | Microsoft |
| Price read from | ajelix.com | microsoft.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Ajelix
- The plan cards show no free tier; the free plan appears only in the FAQ, so confirm it at sign-up.
- Subscriptions are non-refundable according to the pricing FAQ, and cancellation takes effect at the end of the billing cycle.
- It is an AI layer on top of spreadsheets rather than a spreadsheet editor of its own.
- The Enterprise card is sold through a contact form with no published price.
Microsoft Excel
- The Windows and Mac apps need a Microsoft 365 subscription or a one-time Office purchase; only the web and mobile versions are free.
- Excel for the web and the mobile apps have many, but not all, desktop features; macro-enabled workbooks open in a browser but the macros do not run.
- Copilot needs a paid subscription, has usage limits, and on shared plans works for the subscription owner only.
- Microsoft 365 Business Basic ($7.00 per user / month paid yearly, or $5.40 without Teams) includes only the web and mobile versions of Excel.
Key features
Ajelix
- Agentic AI chat
- A chat interface where the assistant carries out multi-step work on files, such as building charts, reports or presentations from a spreadsheet.
- Google Sheets add-on and Excel add-in
- The pricing FAQ says the tools also come as an add-on for Google Sheets and an add-in for Excel.
- Formula and template generators
- The FAQ names an Excel formula generator and an Excel template generator as the most used of its 17 AI tools.
- Add-ons for other Google apps
- Separate add-ons are listed for Google Docs, Slides and Forms in the site navigation.
- Workflow compute tiers
- Plans differ in the CPU and memory given to workflows, from 1 CPU and 1 GB RAM up to 4 CPUs and 8 GB RAM.
Microsoft Excel
- Copilot in Excel
- Edits formulas, tables and formatting from a written request and suggests formulas for the data. It needs a Microsoft 365 subscription and a workbook saved to OneDrive with AutoSave on.
- PivotTables and charts
- PivotTables calculate, summarize and analyze data to show comparisons, patterns and trends, and work with PivotCharts, slicers and timeline controls.
- Power Query
- Imports or connects to external data from files, databases, the web and Azure, then reshapes it before loading. It is available in Excel for Windows, Mac and the web; support on Mac and the web is newer than on Windows.
- Python in Excel
- Python formulas run in the grid using Anaconda libraries such as pandas and Matplotlib. It comes with eligible Microsoft 365 plans; a $24 per user / month add-on gives faster premium compute.
- Co-authoring
- Several people can work in one workbook stored in OneDrive or SharePoint Online and see each other's changes within seconds. In the Windows and Mac apps this requires a Microsoft 365 subscription.
- Templates
- Microsoft offers free Excel templates in more than 40 categories as ready-made starting points for common spreadsheets.
Plans
Ajelix
Lite$32
per user / month, billed annually ($39 billed monthly)
Better AI models, standard usage, 20 MB max file, 500 MB workspace, 1 CPU and 1 GB RAM for workflows.
Pro$82
per user / month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly)
Best industry models, extended usage, 100 MB max file, 2 GB workspace, 2 CPUs and 4 GB RAM.
Max$165
per user / month, billed annually ($199 billed monthly)
Most capable models, twice the Pro usage, 500 MB max file, 10 GB workspace, 4 CPUs and 8 GB RAM.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom usage and file limits, dedicated compute and custom workflows. Contact form only.
Microsoft Excel
Free$0
Excel for the web for 1 person, with sharing and real-time collaboration and 5 GB of cloud storage. Works on web, iOS and Android.
Microsoft 365 Personal$9.99
per month, or $99.99 per year
1 person signed in on up to 5 devices, 1 TB of cloud storage, and the Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Outlook desktop apps with Copilot.
Microsoft 365 Apps for business$10.00
per user / month, paid yearly
Desktop versions of Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Outlook for up to 300 employees, with 1 TB of cloud storage per user.
Microsoft 365 Family$12.99
per month, or $129.99 per year
Everything in Personal for 1 to 6 people, with 1 TB of storage per person. AI features are for the subscription owner only.
Microsoft 365 Premium$19.99
per month, or $199.99 per year
Everything in Family, plus extensive Copilot usage and agentic AI features such as advanced research and analytics.
Office Home 2024$179.99
one-time purchase for 1 PC or Mac
Classic 2024 desktop versions of Excel, Word, PowerPoint and OneNote, with no upgrade path to the next major release.
Ways to pay less
Ajelix
- Nonprofit
Special plan for schools, universities and non-profits
The pricing FAQ says a special plan exists for these organizations and is arranged through the support team.
Microsoft Excel
- Annual discount
Save up to 17% by paying yearly
Microsoft 365 Personal is $99.99 a year against $9.99 a month, Family $129.99 against $12.99 and Premium $199.99 against $19.99.
- Education
Students save 50% on Microsoft 365 Personal
Verified college and university students get Microsoft 365 Personal at half price. Student status has to be re-verified each year to keep the discount.
- Education
Office 365 A1 free for eligible schools
Educators and students with an eligible education email address get Office 365 A1 at no cost, which includes the web versions of Excel and the other core apps.
- Nonprofit
Nonprofit staff pricing on Microsoft 365 E3
Eligible nonprofits can buy Microsoft 365 E3, with desktop, web and mobile versions of Excel, for $9.75 per user / month paid yearly.
- Lifetime license
Office Home 2024 one-time purchase
$179.99 buys the classic 2024 desktop versions of Excel, Word, PowerPoint and OneNote for 1 PC or Mac, with no subscription.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Ajelix or Microsoft Excel?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Ajelix starts at $32 per user / month, billed yearly ($39 billed monthly), and Microsoft Excel starts at $9.99 / month, or $99.99 / year (Microsoft 365 Personal). One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, Ajelix or Microsoft Excel?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Ajelix and Microsoft Excel have a free plan.
Which platforms do Ajelix and Microsoft Excel run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Microsoft Excel lists macOS, Windows, iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.