Excel vs Google Sheets: Feature Differences Checked Against Official Docs
Ravina's team plans in Google Sheets; her finance team works in Excel. She builds the same summary in both. =SUMIFS(...), XLOOKUP, FILTER and UNIQUE work the same way in both apps and return the same answers (Pune: ₹10,700). The differences show up elsewhere: how big the file can get, how you automate it, and what tools sit around the grid.
For everyday formulas the two are close: SUMIFS, XLOOKUP, FILTER, UNIQUE, LAMBDA, tables and pivot tables exist in both. Google Sheets is browser-first, easy to share and has unique functions such as QUERY, IMPORTRANGE and GOOGLEFINANCE; a spreadsheet can hold up to 20 million cells. Excel holds 10,48,576 rows by 16,384 columns per worksheet and adds desktop power tools: Power Query, Power Pivot (on Windows), what-if tools and VBA. Choose by where your team works and how heavy the analysis is.
Download the practice file (vs-google-sheets.xlsx)
Excel file, 9 KB. It has the sample data used below. All numbers in this workbook are fictional teaching data, not real company figures.
Quick answer
- Check the size: Excel allows 10,48,576 rows by 16,384 columns per worksheet; Google Sheets allows up to 20 million cells per spreadsheet.
- Check where people work: Sheets runs in the browser and works offline in Chrome or Edge with the Docs Offline extension; Excel runs on desktop, web and mobile.
- Check automation: VBA and Office Scripts in Excel; recorded macros and Apps Script in Sheets.
- Check data tools: Power Query and Power Pivot in Excel; QUERY and IMPORTRANGE in Sheets.
- Use shared functions (SUMIFS, XLOOKUP, FILTER, UNIQUE) if a file must move between the two.
Feature-by-feature comparison
| Feature | Microsoft Excel | Google Sheets | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Size | 10,48,576 rows by 16,384 columns per worksheet | Up to 20 million cells (or 100 MB) per spreadsheet | Excel limits, Drive file limits |
| Offline | Desktop app works offline; Excel for the web needs an internet connection | Offline in Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge with the Google Docs Offline extension turned on | Excel for the web, Sheets offline |
| Real-time co-editing | Yes, for files in OneDrive or SharePoint | Yes, built in | Same pages |
| Automation | VBA in the desktop app; Office Scripts on the web, Windows and Mac (business and education plans) | Record a macro (Extensions > Macros); it is saved as Apps Script | Office Scripts, Sheets macros |
| Getting and shaping data | Power Query (Get & Transform) | QUERY function; IMPORTRANGE to pull from another spreadsheet | QUERY, IMPORTRANGE |
| Data model | Power Pivot and the Data Model (Excel for Windows) | Connected Sheets for BigQuery data | Where is Power Pivot?, Drive file limits |
| Tables | Excel tables (Ctrl+T) with structured references | Tables (Format > Convert to table) with table references | Sheets tables |
| Pivot tables | PivotTables, plus GROUPBY/PIVOTBY in Microsoft 365 | Pivot tables | Sheets pivot tables |
| Lookup and array functions | XLOOKUP, FILTER, UNIQUE, LAMBDA and more | XLOOKUP, FILTER, UNIQUE, LAMBDA and more | XLOOKUP in Sheets, LAMBDA in Sheets |
| What-if tools | Goal Seek, Data Tables, Solver in the desktop app | Not built in the same way; add-ons or formulas | Excel for the web service description |
| AI assistant | Copilot in Excel (needs an eligible licence) | Gemini in Sheets (depends on your Google plan) | Copilot FAQ |
Checked on 7 October 2026
Both products change often. Each row links to the help page we checked; open it before you make a decision that depends on one feature.
Formulas that move between the two
If a file will be opened in both apps, stick to functions that both support. These gave the same answers in our test:
| Task | Formula | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Sales in Pune | =SUMIFS(Orders!$G$2:$G$25,Orders!$D$2:$D$25,"Pune") | ₹10,700 |
| Orders with Qty of 3 or more | =COUNTIFS(Orders!$F$2:$F$25,">=3") | 11 |
| Price of the first order's product (lookup) | =XLOOKUP(Orders!E2,Orders!$E$2:$E$25,Orders!$G$2:$G$25/Orders!$F$2:$F$25) | ₹420 |
| Different customers | =COUNTA(UNIQUE(Orders!$C$2:$C$25)) | 8 |
| Average order | =AVERAGE(Orders!$G$2:$G$25) | ₹1,314 |
For files shared between both apps, plain cell ranges like those above are the safest choice, because the table features (Excel's structured references and Sheets' table references) are not the same.
Functions only Google Sheets has
| What it does | Google Sheets formula | Closest Excel way |
|---|---|---|
| SQL-like query on a range | =QUERY(Orders!A1:G25,"select D, sum(G) group by D order by sum(G) desc",1) | PivotTable, or GROUPBY in Microsoft 365 |
| Pull a range from another spreadsheet | =IMPORTRANGE("spreadsheet URL","Orders!A1:G25") | Power Query (Get Data > From Workbook), or an external reference |
| Stock price or currency data | =GOOGLEFINANCE("CURRENCY:USDINR") | Stocks data type (Data > Stocks) |
QUERY is worth learning if you know SQL: it uses the Google Visualization API Query Language, so select D, sum(G) group by D reads almost like SQL. See Excel vs SQL for the Excel side.
Which one should you use?
- Many people editing a shared plan, mostly in browsers: Google Sheets is simplest.
- Large data, Power Query clean-ups, Data Model, what-if analysis or VBA: Excel desktop.
- Company already on Microsoft 365: Excel, with files in OneDrive or SharePoint for co-editing.
- Files that travel between both: keep to shared functions and avoid macros, which do not convert.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip
Before you move a workbook from Excel to Sheets (or back), make a list of what does not travel: macros, Power Query steps, Data Model, Sheets-only functions like QUERY or IMPORTRANGE. Fix those first, then move the file. It saves a day of chasing #NAME? and #REF! errors.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – मराठी
Workbook Excel मधून Sheets मध्ये (किंवा उलट) नेण्यापूर्वी काय सोबत येत नाही त्याची list करा: macros, Power Query steps, Data Model, QUERY किंवा IMPORTRANGE सारखी Sheets-only functions. आधी ते सोडवा, मग file हलवा. त्यामुळे #NAME? आणि #REF! errors शोधण्यात जाणारा दिवस वाचतो.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – हिंदी
Workbook को Excel से Sheets में (या उल्टा) ले जाने से पहले उन चीज़ों की list बनाइए जो साथ नहीं जातीं: macros, Power Query steps, Data Model, QUERY या IMPORTRANGE जैसी Sheets-only functions। पहले इन्हें ठीक कीजिए, फिर file ले जाइए। इससे #NAME? और #REF! errors ढूँढने में जाने वाला दिन बचता है।
Practice task
- Upload the practice file to Google Drive, open it in Sheets and check that the Works in both sheet shows the same results.
- In Sheets, paste the QUERY formula from the Sheets only sheet into an empty cell. Compare it with a PivotTable in Excel.
- Write a COUNTIFS that works in both apps to count orders from Nashik.
- List three features your team uses that would not survive a move from Excel to Sheets.
Learn it properly
Course lessons:
- 9.4 UNIQUE
- 4.6 XLOOKUP Basics and if_not_found
- 10.1 Opening Power Query: Data from a Workbook or CSV
Related guides: Excel vs SQL: Term-by-Term Mapping with Side-by-Side Examples · Excel on Mac vs Windows vs the Web: What Works Where (2026) · FILTER Function
Frequently asked questions
Can Google Sheets open Excel files?
Yes, you can upload .xlsx files to Google Drive and open them in Sheets. Features Sheets does not support, such as VBA macros and Power Query, do not carry over.
Is Google Sheets free?
Sheets is available with a free Google account; business plans add admin controls and more storage. Excel for the web is also available free with a Microsoft account, while the desktop app needs Microsoft 365 or a one-time purchase.
Which is better for data analysis?
For small to medium data and team editing, both work. For large data, repeatable clean-ups (Power Query), data models and what-if tools, Excel desktop is stronger.
Does Google Sheets have XLOOKUP?
Yes. Google's help page documents XLOOKUP with lookup range, result range, missing value, match mode and search mode.