Google Sheets vs Microsoft Excel

Google Sheets

• Teams that edit and review the same spreadsheet together in a browser
• Organizations that already pay for Google Workspace
• Analysts pulling BigQuery or Looker data into a spreadsheet

Microsoft Excel

• People who need a full desktop spreadsheet on Windows or Mac
• Analysts working with PivotTables, Power Query and Python
• Households: Microsoft 365 Family covers 1 to 6 people
• Occasional users who only need the free browser version

Google Sheets

• There is no standalone paid Sheets plan; the business version comes only as part of Google Workspace, with Gmail, Drive and Meet.
• Gemini in Sheets is not in Business Starter; it starts at Business Standard, $14 per user / month on a 1-year commitment.
• A spreadsheet created in or converted to Google Sheets is capped at 20 million cells or 100 MB.
• Google's help lists Sheets for computer browsers, Android, iPhone and iPad; no Windows or Mac desktop app is listed.

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.

Google Sheets

Co-editing and revision history

Several people can work in one spreadsheet at the same time. Sharing settings control who can view, comment or edit, and revision history restores earlier versions.

Gemini in Sheets

Builds and edits spreadsheets from a prompt, writes and repairs formulas, and fills table columns with summarized or categorized data. Among Business editions it starts at Business Standard.

Sheets canvas

Turns the data in a sheet into interactive mini-apps such as dashboards, heat maps and Kanban boards from a text prompt, without writing code.

Connected Sheets and data connectors

Connected Sheets analyzes BigQuery or Looker data from the grid without SQL, and connectors bring in data from sources such as Asana, HubSpot, QuickBooks and Salesforce.

Excel files

Microsoft Excel files can be edited directly without making a copy, or converted to Sheets format. Gemini features such as Sheets canvas need the file converted first.

Offline editing

Spreadsheets can be created, viewed and edited without a connection. On a computer this requires Chrome or Microsoft Edge with the Google Docs Offline extension.

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.

Google Sheets

• Personal Google Account$0

  Create, edit and share spreadsheets in a browser or the mobile apps, with co-editing, revision history and offline access.

• Business Starter$7

  per user / month, 1-year commitment ($8.40 flexible)

  Google Workspace with Sheets and 30 GB of pooled storage per user. Gemini in Sheets is not included.

• Business Standard$14

  per user / month, 1-year commitment ($16.80 flexible)

  2 TB of pooled storage per user. The lowest Business edition that includes Gemini in Sheets.

• Business Plus$22

  per user / month, 1-year commitment ($26.40 flexible)

  Everything in Standard with 5 TB of pooled storage per user, plus Vault, eDiscovery and advanced endpoint management.

• EnterpriseCustom

  No minimum or maximum user count, with data loss prevention, context-aware access and data regions; priced through Google sales.

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.

Google Sheets

• Annual discount

  Save 16% with a 1-year commitment

  Business Starter is $7 per user per month on the Annual/Fixed-Term Plan against $8.40 on the Flexible Plan. Standard drops from $16.80 to $14 and Plus from $26.40 to $22.

• Nonprofit

  Google Workspace for Nonprofits at $0

  Eligible nonprofits get Google Workspace for Nonprofits at $0, or Business Standard at $3.50 and Business Plus at $6.16 per user per month on a 1-year commitment.

• Education

  Education Fundamentals at no charge

  Google Workspace for Education Fundamentals, which includes Sheets, is available at no charge to qualifying institutions.

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.