Google Sheets vs. Microsoft Excel

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Google Sheets
Score 8.5 out of 10
N/A
Google Sheets is the spreadsheet app available on Google Workspace, or standalone, with a free plan for personal use and accessible via mobile apps for iOS and Android.N/A
Microsoft Excel
Score 8.9 out of 10
N/A
Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet application available as part of Microsoft 365 (Office 365), or standalone, in cloud-based and on-premise editions.
$6.99
per month
Pricing
Google SheetsMicrosoft Excel
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Excel with Microsoft 365
$6.99
per month
Excel for 1 PC or Mac
$139.99
perpetual license
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Google SheetsMicrosoft Excel
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoYes
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details——
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Google SheetsMicrosoft Excel
Considered Both Products
Google Sheets
Chose Google Sheets
I prefer Microsoft Excel's functionality because I think it is slightly more user-friendly than Google Sheets, but because of the cloud storage and sharing capabilities of Sheets, I literally always opt to use Sheets over Excel. I really think the only advantage that Microsoft …
Chose Google Sheets
The major reason I use Google Sheets over Microsoft Excel and Apple Numbers is for its ability to allow multiple users to access and work on the same spreadsheet at once. This is incredibly more efficient and effective than updating and sending copies upon copies of the same …
Chose Google Sheets
Google Sheets allows for all of the capabilities of Microsoft Excel, but with real-time edits that can create a collaborative experience across teams. By being able to access people's changes in real-time, it makes for an easier work experience, especially in the remote world …
Chose Google Sheets
I find Google Sheets much simpler and easier to use than Microsoft Excel. It is free which can make a huge difference if you are on a budget. It is also entirely web-based which makes sharing and collaborating much easier as well as ensuring that there is only one version of …
Chose Google Sheets
Microsoft Excel is much more functional and has more functions/capabilities than Google Sheets. It is also faster compared to Google Sheets. On the other side, Google Sheets is better for collaboration and saves you a lot of time. As I usually do not work with big files I …
Chose Google Sheets
Microsoft Excel might be good for large-scale local work, but Google Sheets is so fast and clean. I have also used other systems like Air Table, and Excel online, but honestly Google Sheets is so ubiquitous and easy to use I always start there first. Other software products I …
Chose Google Sheets
From my experience, Google sheets doesn't compare to excel. It suffices for basic spreadsheet needs but does not compare in terms of functionality. An organizational change led me to the opportunity to use Excel and I'm happy to have made the switch and have not looked back. …
Chose Google Sheets
In my opinion, based on my own experience, I believe that Google Sheets stands in the second position in my list of spreadsheet software largely because of things such as ease to share and access data, multiple edits simultaneously and keep a track of the real-time changes, …
Chose Google Sheets
Google Sheets is newest of all and is easy to understand. It has better UI or display then rest all. Minimal design helps to focus more on work. In built chat features is one that makes it stand out of league then rest of all. Unlike MS Excel and LibreOffice it is available …
Chose Google Sheets
Google sheets has a clear advantage. It is more simple to use for daily applications, allows for easier collaboration, and has portability (offline working). It allows for easy sharing and integration with other Google online programs such as Gmail, Google Drive, Google Docs, …
Chose Google Sheets
The biggest kicker here is that Google Sheets is free. On top of that, it is way easier to share the file with other users who are not within our company, with easy controls over how they can access and what exactly they can do with the file. Also, being able to see who all has …
Chose Google Sheets
I enjoy the ease of access and sharing information with anyone, google sheets is great for that. You can easily send a link in an email or text message which makes it easier than other programs because you have to purchase separately if their software doesn't come included at …
Chose Google Sheets
Google Sheets is very good in performance and can be accessed from anywhere being a cloud application. That is the major differentiator for it. Sharing of documents is not a difficult task anymore and no need to use space from our personal devices. It is very simple to access …
Chose Google Sheets
Sheets is more collaborative and allows multiple users to access the spreadsheet at once, but Excel allows for more formulas and tends not to "stick" as much when difficult or multiple formulas are used at once. The capabilities of sheets are robust enough for our purposes and …
Chose Google Sheets
I feel Google Sheets is better compared to the many available competitors thanks to its many features and also easy integration with Google products. It is also easy to use and is available online.
Chose Google Sheets
Excel certainly is very robust and is perfect for power users who need to conduct complicated formulations. However, the program is so feature-rich, it's possible that it may be confusing to users. And most users will never need or use 60% of the features available.
Chose Google Sheets
I think that Sheets has much better collaborative features that work well across teams and on documents that need to be shared. However, it is lacking some of the more robust and important features that Excel offers its users. I would almost say that Sheets is a stripped-down …
Chose Google Sheets
It is easy to use and better for collaboration than excel. It is missing several things as compared to Excel, but most organizations are not advanced excel users, so they will not feel the difference.

I would also say that it does make it easier to integrate with other systems …
Chose Google Sheets
Much easier to share and collaborate with Sheets than Excel. Also I can access from any computer anywhere because everything is in the cloud. I love the fact I can access Sheets form my mobile devices. This isn't possible with Excel. Love all the Google work apps. Wish I could …
Chose Google Sheets
It has very simple interface, so individuals with beginner computer skills would feel more comfortable working in Google Sheets.
Everything is saved automatically, no need to worry whether your computer will crash. If you have a slow or old computer, Google Sheets is a safer …
Chose Google Sheets
Google Sheets when compared to Excel for me is just below in terms of comparison. The product covers almost everything you could need but the workflow and usability is where it is lacking. I would call it a pay for what you get. This review is coming from someone who made …
Chose Google Sheets
Excel can house large amounts of data so it is easy to work with, analyze, make visualizations, import/export other file types. It does it all, except be easily shared. Sheets is fantastic for sharing instantly, creating team dashboards, organizing tasks. Formulas that are in …
Microsoft Excel
Chose Microsoft Excel
While other products have been useful for being easily sharable or free, Microsoft Excel handles more data with easier to use functions, pivot tables, graphing, and formulas than all that I have used. Google Sheets is a close second but has not been able to handle the large …
Chose Microsoft Excel
I personally like Excel better than the other two programs I have listed. They are very close to excel but I know where everything is and what all the symbols are in excel where the other ones have some different nuances that take a little bit more time or that I have to …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel are almost identical in the way they function: spreadsheets, functions, etc. The difference between Microsoft Excel is that it's its own application while Google Sheets is accessed through the web. Microsoft Excel also has different plug-ins …
Chose Microsoft Excel
[Microsoft] Excel beats Google Sheets due to its ease of usability and speed. As the data keeps increasing, Google Sheets starts slowing down and will make you impatient. It also provides many functions (nearly 400) which is far ahead of Google Sheets. Overall [Microsoft] Excel …
Chose Microsoft Excel
I use Google Sheets when there is small [amounts of] data that i have to enter and share with somebody over my Google account. Other than that, i always prefer Microsoft Excel since it provides way more ease of use when compared to [Sheets]. It is a very good tool and I will be …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Excel is much better than Google Sheets. It has better features and compatibility, especially for windows. For mac, I don’t see a big difference as excel needs some significant improvement for mac os. The Cloud version of excel is very similar to mac and I don’t see a lot of …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Actually, Power Bi and Planful can be [used] with Excel, each solution has strengths, Power Bi is more focused on graphics, and Planful is more on the financial database, but compared with Google Sheets, Excel is better, first, you can use out of browser, it has a specific …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Google Sheets is a good spreadsheet software for it's online sharing capabilities, but Microsoft Excel is a much more loaded program with a lot more capabilities and functions. Excel to Google Sheets is like a MOAB compared to a bottle rocket in terms of functionality and …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Though Google Sheets is a good application but it requires additional effort from the users for doing the data related issues. Having the requirement of data connection made the sheets bit of tough for the users.
Chose Microsoft Excel
Excel is a far superior product compared to Numbers as far as it's usability, simplicity, and functions. I do like the ease of sharing that Google Sheets offers and that's an advantage, but otherwise, very similar. Often I use Excel over Google because of how user friendly it …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Out of Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Power BI, IBM SPSS, and Google Sheets, Microsoft Excel is by far the most common tool used for anything data-related across organizations. Accordingly, our organization has also implemented Microsoft Excel as a first-step tool. We recently …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel is very easy to use and very very user friendly. While Google Sheets is also very simple, Microsoft Excel takes the lead when it comes to reporting and analysis with its different types of charts (line, pie, bar etc.). The only reason to use Google Sheets …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Google Sheets is a comparable product to Microsoft Excel and it's more flexible when it comes to sharing because it can be shared with anyone who has the link or Google Drive access to it. However, Google Sheets does not have all the functions, especially when it comes to …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel is legacy software and no one till now had matched the functionality of Excel. We can even automate daily tasks easily with help of macros. Also one can connect various data base to it and you are good to go without any other hassle. Google Sheets is …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Excel stands out from Google Sheets and Apple Numbers with its extensive range of advanced functions, including financial, statistical, and data analysis tools, surpassing the capabilities of its competitors. As the universally recognized industry standard, Excel offers better …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel stacks up against them with better User Interface, this plays a more crucial role than any of the functionality that other software offers.
Its ability to have a lot of functions for handling day to day task and analyzing data and automating the task.
Microsoft …
Chose Microsoft Excel
We prefer [Microsoft] Excel because it integrates with other Microsoft applications we use and our employees are more familiar with it. We also find it to have vastly more capabilities in areas such as graphics, functions, formatting, statistical and analytical tools. We need …
Chose Microsoft Excel
We utilize Tableau and Alteryx in addition to Excel. We use Excel since we have a data dump that could be utilized in feeding for these two solutions. We select Excel for some manual work then plug the data into the other two tools for further analysis around text analytics …
Chose Microsoft Excel
I've used a few of the mobile spreadsheet programs that you can find on the app store and found them to be inferior to Excel, even the mobile version. Access is better than Excel for certain situations but it is largely overkill much of the time and requires a time investment …
Chose Microsoft Excel
In [Microsoft] Excel, a stacked column chart is a very basic [Microsoft] Excel charts type that permits from a piece to whole assessments concluded time, or through
Chose Microsoft Excel
Excel is my preferred product. the code is much simpler to understand than googles code, and overall looks much better than that of Google. Adobe is okay, but not meant for anything very complex. Even if I work in other software, I always make sure to finish my final product in …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel is very easy to understand and very easy-to-use software. It has almost all tools for data analysis and preparing spreadsheets. It has all mathematical and logical formulas that are used to solve complex problems. Microsoft Excel has some amazing tools like …
Chose Microsoft Excel
Excel can run many more applications. No comparison in this regard.
Top Pros
Top Cons
Best Alternatives
Google SheetsMicrosoft Excel
Small Businesses
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel
Score 8.9 out of 10
Google Sheets
Google Sheets
Score 8.5 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel
Score 8.9 out of 10
Google Sheets
Google Sheets
Score 8.5 out of 10
Enterprises
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel
Score 8.9 out of 10
Google Sheets
Google Sheets
Score 8.5 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Google SheetsMicrosoft Excel
Likelihood to Recommend
8.4
(38 ratings)
9.5
(57 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(1 ratings)
9.9
(5 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(2 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
8.0
(1 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Ease of integration
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
Google SheetsMicrosoft Excel
Likelihood to Recommend
Google
Google Sheets is a great tool mostly for people in the finance department such as accountants who have to analyze hundreds of transactions. The software makes it easy to organize data and handle some analysis. Also, when it comes to data presentation, Google Sheets offers some of the best features. However, this is not to sat people outside the finance docket cannot benefit from this software. It is a great tool to have when handling data.
Read full review
Microsoft
For tasks like financial analysis, budgeting, forecasting, and data visualization, I frequently use Microsoft Excel. I can develop financial models, use pivot tables to examine enormous datasets, and produce eye-catching visualizations thanks to its comprehensive features. I have, however, also come across circumstances in which Excel isn't the best tool.Excel falls short of alternatives like Google Sheets when I need to collaborate with my team in real-time. I favor employing robust database management systems or data analysis tools like SQL, Python, or R for managing very big data sets or sophisticated calculations. I use specialized tools like SPSS, SAS, or programming languages for better outcomes when complex statistical analysis or machine learning are necessary. And finally, for formatting elaborate reports, In conclusion, even though I consider Excel to be a great tool for many finance jobs, there are some limits in collaborating, processing big amounts of data, performing complex analysis, and creating documents that I take into account when choosing the best tool for the job.
Read full review
Pros
Google
  • It is a cloud-based platform.
  • You can work in the same file simultaneously with your colleagues.
  • It allows you to share files much faster.
  • It allows you to access your Google Sheet files whenever you like and wherever you like if you have stable internet connection.
  • It has great integration with other Google software.
  • Google Sheets is very user-friendly and very intuitive to use.
Read full review
Microsoft
  • It is very good at embedded formulas and tying cells to one another
  • It allows me to compare deals terms on a side-by-side basis and talk my clients through it easily.
  • It is very helpful as well in terms of allowing me to filter/sort results in many different ways depending on what specific information I am most interested in prioritizing.
Read full review
Cons
Google
  • Pivot tables are different but could be improved upon; sort, totals, filters
  • When entering negative numbers as the first in a formula you need to remember to "+-100+25" instead of "-100+25"
  • The power of the internet of course makes it easy to find solution, but the help function is not easily available
  • Color coding changes on the cell, but there is not an easy way to click on a cell and use the selected color; like excel
Read full review
Microsoft
  • Counting conditionally formatted cells (e.g., you have 5 green cells, 10 red ones, and 3 orange ones in a row).
  • Merging cells in a table; I have to remove the table first and then re-add the table to merge cells together.
  • Offering more preset colour categories for formatting graphs.
  • Built-in functions to run ANOVAs, Multiple Linear Regression, Factor Analysis, etc.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Google
It is easy to use, free of charge for basic functionality, and easy to share with people within or outside your team or company
Read full review
Microsoft
It comes with MS Office. Unless we stop using PCs or Microsoft Office, it's highly unlikely, even imperceivable to not continue to use Excel. It would be nice to see more Excel functions used, though, beside basic tables and calculations.
Read full review
Usability
Google
No answers on this topic
Microsoft
Microsoft excel stands out in its User Interface as compared to any other software which offers same functionality. It can be used by a beginner as well as the expert in the same field. It is having many features as we dig deep in it like advance functions, dynamic arrays, pivot, VBA and Macros.
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
Google
No answers on this topic
Microsoft
I have rarely, if ever, had issues with its availability.
Read full review
Performance
Google
No answers on this topic
Microsoft
Again it does what I need it to do with little to no issues.
Read full review
Support Rating
Google
No answers on this topic
Microsoft
I have not had to use it often, but it is good.
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
Google
The major reason I use Google Sheets over Microsoft Excel and Apple Numbers is for its ability to allow multiple users to access and work on the same spreadsheet at once. This is incredibly more efficient and effective than updating and sending copies upon copies of the same Excel or Numbers spreadsheet back and forth as email attachments.
Read full review
Microsoft
We utilize Tableau and Alteryx in addition to Excel. We use Excel since we have a data dump that could be utilized in feeding for these two solutions. We select Excel for some manual work then plug the data into the other two tools for further analysis around text analytics like word clouds in Tableau, or text mining in Alteryx. Excel is an input data source that we use in conjunction with these two.
Read full review
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
Google
No answers on this topic
Microsoft
N/A I was not involved in this process.
Read full review
Scalability
Google
No answers on this topic
Microsoft
It integrates well with all cross functional teams
Read full review
Return on Investment
Google
  • We've used it to prepare quick budgets, presentations for funds that have helped raise money
  • It has helped us quickly analyze raw data, collaboratively.
  • it has helped us work more efficiently by making it easier to work from one sheet and not lose track of versions by passing around attached documents
Read full review
Microsoft
  • Excel has positively impacted the business as it has increased our efficiency.
  • It also saves us the time that we would have spent on making the calculations that it does for us.
  • Since it works on all devices and is compatible with both Windows and Mac, we do not have to invest in any other alternative.
Read full review
ScreenShots