The Ultimate Microsoft Excel vs. Google Sheets Comparison

Introduction

At Tiller, we believe spreadsheets are an incredible tool for achieving financial control because you can build a workflow that uniquely matches your goals and your situation. Spreadsheets are simple, private, and familiar. But more important, spreadsheets are endlessly flexible. They can be tailored for every stage of your unique financial journey.

The two leading spreadsheet applications are Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel. Each is backed by a large tech giant, and each offers robust features, powerful tools, and thousands of prebuilt templates to build a spreadsheet that works for you. You can easily create and modify categories, adjust formulas, create visualizations, and format your budget spreadsheet to your liking.

Whether you’re a beginner or an advanced user, this guide will equip you with the knowledge and resources you need in order to choose between Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets and start using them to manage a personal budget today.

Why You Should Trust Us

We know spreadsheets! Tiller is the only automated personal finance service based on Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel, combining the ease of an app with the flexibility of spreadsheets.

Since 2016 when Tiller launched, we have been pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in both Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets. Our team works closely with the Microsoft and Google development teams as we improve Tiller. This gives us a unique insight into the strengths and weaknesses of each of these apps.

In Short, Excel or Sheets?

The Tiller Foundation Template in Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel.

Excel vs. Google Sheets: who wins? 

Microsoft Excel is great for managing complex personal finances, offering powerful tools like macros and Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) to create custom financial models, automate calculations, and analyze data in depth.

Google Sheets is ideal for shared personal finance tasks, such as family budgeting or tracking expenses with a partner, because of its real-time collaboration, cloud accessibility, and user-friendly interface.

What Are Spreadsheets? 

Spreadsheets have been around since Visicalc debuted in 1979. 

It’s easy to see why. Spreadsheets help you put data together in a structured way that’s accessible to anyone. 

With their vast array of formulas and functions, spreadsheets let you automate calculations, reduce errors, and save time. Their flexible layouts and powerful formulas provide an ideal tool for managing financial data, including personal budgets. 

Spreadsheets are used by millions of people to manage their finances in a flexible, customizable way that they’ll never outgrow. Spreadsheets give users unlimited power and possibility. 

Top Uses of Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets for Personal Finance

The Tiller Foundation Template Budget View in Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel.

Budgeting

Budgeting — tracking expenses and income over a period of time — is the most common use of Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets for personal finance.

Financial Forecasting

Excel and Sheets are also helpful when doing financial forecasting. This includes calculating loan repayments, retirement savings, and other long-term financial goals.

Pricing

App	Pricing
Microsoft Excel — Limited Online Only	Free
Microsoft Excel — Standalone Desktop	$149 Office Suite Home (Word, Excel, OneNote, PowerPoint)
Microsoft Excel — Microsoft 365	$69.99 per year for individual $99.99 per year for family (6 people)
Google Sheets	Free

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft Excel offers a tiered approach to pricing. The following refers to Home pricing; Microsoft has different pricing for business users.

Microsoft Excel Online is a free online-only version of Excel that offers limited functionality. A desktop app is also offered as a one-time purchase as part of Microsoft Office Suite Home for $149.

The most fully featured way to get Excel is as part of a Microsoft 365 subscription, which is available in two tiers: individual and family. Microsoft 365 comes with 1TB of OneDrive online storage as well as the other Microsoft Office apps, in both online and desktop app versions.

Google Sheets

Google Sheets is free with a Google account and is part of the larger Google Workspace suite, which includes Documents, Slides, and several other apps.

Storage

App	Storage
Microsoft Excel	Up to the limits of your OneDrive account (5GB for a free account and 1TB for a Microsoft 365 account) Files are saved on your computer by default, but can be backed up online.
Google Sheets	Up to the limits of your Google Drive account (15GB for a free account, more via subscription) Files are saved online by default, but can be downloaded in various formats to save as a backup.

Microsoft Excel

By default, your Microsoft Excel spreadsheet files are saved locally on your own computer.

You can also automatically save them to Microsoft’s OneDrive cloud service. Free OneDrive accounts come with 5GB of storage, while Microsoft 365 subscriptions come with 1TB of storage.

Google Sheets

Google Sheets saves your files online in Google Drive automatically.

You can export copies of files locally as backups, and you can do some work offline in Google’s Chrome web browser, but files are saved online by default.

Google accounts come with 15GB of Drive space that is shared across its services, and you can pay for more storage if you need it.

Core Features and Strengths

App	Core Features and Strengths
Microsoft Excel	Excel has been around for decades, which means it’s reliable, has a huge library of templates, and has thousands of features.
Google Sheets	Sheets is a cloud native, which means it’s easy to use and saves automatically to the cloud. It also has many of the same features as Excel. Its standout features are online collaboration and version history.

Many of the core features of Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets are the same or very similar.

Microsoft Excel

Excel has been around since 1985 and has added many features over that time.

Excel has hundreds of built-in formulas, charts, visualizations, and other data processing features. It is fast, stable, and can handle extremely large spreadsheets with complicated calculations.

There are huge libraries of templates from both Microsoft and the user community.

Excel has a huge library of native keyboard shortcuts, plus the ability to add custom shortcuts.

Google Sheets

Sheets was built from the ground up for the cloud. That means it’s easy to use, runs in a web browser (and mobile apps), and has native cloud integration.

Sheets has most of the basic formulas and functions as Excel, and more are being added all the time. Sheets has dozens of templates and can open most Excel templates (though some features may not work in some files).

Sheets saves everything automatically and gives very detailed file history. You never have to worry about making a change and not being able to change it back.

A standout feature of Sheets is online collaboration. Multiple people can edit the same document seamlessly.

User Interface and Performance

The user interfaces for Excel and Sheets.

App	User Interface and Performance
Microsoft Excel	Excel takes full advantage of desktop/laptop processing power. It can easily handle large spreadsheets and datasets.
Google Sheets	Sheets is fast, simple, and has many of the same features and functions as Excel. It can be limited by Internet connection strength and speed.

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft Excel takes full advantage of desktop or notebook processing power. It can handle very large datasets with ease. Excel’s user interface is complex but highly customizable.

Mobile versions of Excel don’t have all the features of the desktop version but are still capable apps for updating spreadsheets on the go.

Excel has a breathtaking 17-billion-cell limit per spreadsheet.

Google Sheets

Google Sheets is fast for all but the most massive spreadsheets and complex calculations. Slow internet speeds can also impact its performance.

Sheets’ mobile apps are not as fully featured as the browser-based version but can still handle most needs on the go, including online collaboration.

Sheets has a less complex but also less customizable user interface. Sheets has a 10-million-cell limit per spreadsheet, which is very hard to reach in even highly advanced spreadsheets.

Collaboration and Sharing 

Sharing the Tiller Foundation Template in Google Sheets.

App	Collaboration and Sharing
Microsoft Excel	Excel offers a couple ways of collaborating on spreadsheets and sharing files, but it’s more cumbersome and limited than Sheets.
Google Sheets	Sheets really shines with online collaboration and sharing. It also offers built-in version history so you don’t have to worry about losing data.

Microsoft Excel

Excel offers several ways to share files and collaborate with others so long as the files are stored in the cloud (not on your desktop computer).

Excel Online provides online collaboration for users without the desktop version of Excel.

Google Sheets

This is where Google Sheets really shines. It offers real-time collaboration so that two or more people can work on the same spreadsheet at the same time—ideal for when you need to share your budget with a partner.

Sheets also offers options to share with read-only access or give full editing privileges to anyone else—even if they don’t have a Google account. This can be especially helpful for things like sharing your files with your financial advisor.

Sheets offers built-in version history. You never have to worry about losing data by erasing something and saving. WIth Sheets, you can always go back to a previous version.

Security and Privacy

App	Security and Privacy
Microsoft Excel	Files can be kept locally if wanted and never go online. Files can also be password protected and encrypted.
Google Sheets	Files are always online and are protected by Google’s online security and privacy.

Microsoft Excel

Because you can store files locally on your computer, Microsoft Excel is a great option for those who prefer to keep data out of the cloud.

You can also password protect and encrypt files.

Files can also be stored online in OneDrive and are subject to Microsoft’s data policies and security.

Google Sheets

Sheets files are stored in the cloud and are subject to Google’s data policies and security (Google does not use your content for ads). Files are saved online but can be downloaded in several file formats.

Using two-factor authentication provides important security, and Google’s optional and free Advanced Protection Program offers some of the most robust consumer security available.

Customization and Automation

App	Customization and Automation
Microsoft Excel	Massive built-in customization and automation. There is also a rabid Excel fan base.
Google Sheets	Most customization and automation is handled by third parties.

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft Excel offers several ways to automate your work and add advanced features.

Macros can be used to automatically perform common functions (for example, you can record a macro that applies the same formatting to certain information). Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) allows even more customization with computer coding.

Because Excel has a large user base, there are many plug-ins and add-ons. Be sure you only download scripts and macros from sources you trust, because they can be a security concern.

Excel also allows you to customize keyboard shortcuts and toolbars so that your most-used commands are just a tap or click away.

Google Sheets

Google Sheets has Google Apps Script, its answer to VBA. It also has the ability to create macros. The Google Workspace Marketplace has thousands of add-ins that can build on Sheets’ functionality.

It’s also easy to connect Sheets to other Google and third-party services that can extend the data in Google Sheets into other applications (for example, Google Forms for surveys, Tiller for personal finance, Zapier for workflows).

Charts, Graphs, and Other Data Visualization

A chart showing monthly spending data.

A pivot table in Excel.

App	Charts, Graphs, and Other Data Visualization
Microsoft Excel	Excel has numerous options for data visualization.
Google Sheets	Sheets offers many of the same charts, graphs, and visualizations Excel does. Third parties can provide even more options.

Microsoft Excel

Excel offers many advanced features for analyzing spending patterns, including pivot tables, charts, and graphs. These features are ideal for users who want to track trends over time or get a visualization of their finances.

Google Sheets

Sheets offers many basic charting and graphing features.

Support and Community

App	Support and Community
Microsoft Excel	There is a large community dedicated to Excel. Hundreds of books show how to use Excel, and Microsoft has extensive online documentation.
Google Sheets	Lots of online help from Google and third parties. Sheets also has an active online community of users.

Microsoft Excel

Excel has been around since 1985 and has built a large and dedicated following. Hundreds (if not thousands) of books on Excel explain everything from the basics to advanced statistical models.

There are many internet forums dedicated to Excel, including several focused on personal finance. In addition, Microsoft has extensive online documentation.

Google Sheets

While Google Sheets doesn’t have as long of a history as Excel, there are still numerous internet forums that discuss the unique features of Sheets.

Google also has an extensive online library of help documents, including information about how Sheets differs from Excel.

Interoperability

App	Interoperability
Microsoft Excel	Can open files exported from Google Sheets in .xlsx or .csv format. Third parties can provide additional integrations.
Google Sheets	Can import .xlsx files. Third parties can provide additional integrations.

Both Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets are part of the larger suite of office products from their respective company. Each integrates well with those other apps. For example, you can embed spreadsheets in slide presentations or text documents. The interfaces of each office suite are similar across their respective apps.

Additionally, files can be shared between Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets. Google Sheets can both open and export Excel and csv files. Some third-party tools like Zapier that allow varying levels of syncing of data.

Templates that were designed for one app may not work well with the other, because formulas and other advanced functions do not always transfer seamlessly between apps.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

App	Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Microsoft Excel	Uses Microsoft Copilot (premium subscription), which is based on OpenAI’s technologies.
Google Sheets	A free version of Google Gemini is built in. More advanced features are available via subscription.

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft offers an additional subscription that integrates its Copilot AI technology directly into Excel (and the other Microsoft 365 apps).

Copilot, which is based on OpenAI’s technology, can help you set up documents, create helpful visualizations and summaries, and more.

Google Sheets

Google has created its own AI, called Gemini, which is integrated with Sheets and the other Google Workspace apps.

It can create and summarize documents. Gemini also offers more features with an additional subscription.

Overall Pros and Cons of Microsoft Excel

Excel Pros	Excel Cons
Advanced features.	Complex and can be difficult to learn and use.
Outstanding performance.	Can be expensive.
Can be used completely offline.	Poor collaboration features.

Pros

Microsoft Excel is the grandfather of spreadsheet apps, and it shows. It has the most advanced features and great performance.

It also has native offline access and is the most customizable spreadsheet app.

Cons

Excel has acquired a lot of complexity over the years. It comes with a steep learning curve and can be overwhelming to start with.

It’s also more expensive than Google Sheets and isn’t as easy to collaborate with.

It saves files automatically only with a OneDrive account, which can sometimes lead to data loss if the app crashes while you’re working on a document.

Ideal Use Case

Microsoft Excel is ideal for managing complex personal finances, such as investment tracking, retirement planning, and detailed budgeting, thanks to its advanced features and high level of customization.

Its offline accessibility ensures reliability even without an internet connection, making it a great choice for users who require precision and control.

Overall Pros and Cons of Google Sheets

Sheets Pros	Sheets Cons
Free.	Less customizable than Excel.
Outstanding collaboration.	Offers fewer functions and features than Excel.
Built-in version history.	Works only online (with limited offline capabilities). customizable than Excel.

Pros

The standout features of Google Sheets are that it’s free, has intuitive and native collaboration, and has file version history.

It also has a simpler user interface than Excel and automatically saves files to the cloud by default.

Cons

Google Sheets is less customizable than Excel, so if you’re a power user or like optimizing an application for how you use it, Sheets may not be the best choice.

Sheets offers fewer formulas, visualizations, and other features than Excel does, though more are being added all the time. Sheets can be difficult to work with offline.

Ideal Use Case

Google Sheets is ideal for users seeking a free, cloud-based tool with intuitive collaboration features and a simple interface.

It’s perfect for simple budgeting, shared financial tracking, and tasks requiring real-time updates.

Conclusion

Deciding whether to use Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets comes down to many factors.

If you’re looking for something free, easy to use, and with great collaboration features, you may want to use Google Sheets.

If you’re a power user, more familiar with Microsoft Office, or need local or offline file access, then Microsoft Excel may be better for you.

Whichever app you choose, you have many options for setting up and maintaining a personal budget. And Tiller makes it easy to manage your personal finances and budget with either app.

Additional Resources

Microsoft Excel 

• Excel Home Page: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/excel
• Excel Training from Microsoft: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/excel
• Microsoft Tech Community: techcommunity.microsoft.com
• Reddit Excel Community: reddit.com/r/excel
• Stack Overflow: stackoverflow.com/questions/tagged/excel

Google Sheets 

• Sheets Home Page: https://workspace.google.com/products/sheets/
• Sheets Help from Google: https://support.google.com/docs/topic/9054603
• Google Switching Guide: https://support.google.com/docs/answer/13189180
• Reddit Sheets Community: https://www.reddit.com/r/sheets/
• Stack Overflow: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/tagged/sheets

FAQs

1. Can Google Sheets edit Microsoft Excel files, and vice versa? 
   Yes, you can import and export files between Excel and Google Sheets. Google Sheets supports Excel’s .xlsx format, and Excel can open files exported from Google Sheets. However, some advanced features, formulas, and formatting may not translate perfectly between the two apps.
2. Does Microsoft Excel have collaboration features like Google Sheets does?
   Yes, Excel online offers collaboration, though it’s more limited than Sheets is. Be sure to read Microsoft’s current documentation about this feature to understand how it works.
3. Can Google Sheets be used offline like Microsoft Excel can?
   Yes, Google Sheets offers offline access via the Google Chrome web browser. Note that you do need to enable offline features before you go offline. Also, its offline functionality is more limited compared to Excel, which can be used completely offline.
4. Which program is more secure or private?
   Microsoft Excel offers more control over where files are stored (locally or in OneDrive) and includes password protection for files. Google Sheets stores files in the cloud via Google Drive. Both tools have encryption and robust cloud security measures.
5. Are there any cost differences between Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets?
   Google Sheets is free to use with a Google account. Microsoft Excel is part of the paid Microsoft 365 subscription or available for a one-time purchase. Excel Online offers a free version but with limited functionality.
6. Can I automate tasks in both Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets?
   Yes, both tools support automation. Excel uses Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) for advanced automation, while Google Sheets uses Google Apps Script. While both can automate repetitive tasks, Excel’s VBA is generally more powerful and flexible, especially for complex workflows. Additionally, Excel offers the use of macros, where users can record tasks they often repeat and have Excel run them again automatically. Both apps include extensive third-party integration.

Glossary of Terms

• Spreadsheet: A file format that organizes data in a grid of rows and columns, allowing you to easily calculate and analyze information.
• Budget: A financial plan outlining expected income and expenses over a period.
• Formula: An expression that calculates the value of a cell.
• Function: A predefined formula.
• Macro: A set of instructions that automate tasks.

Using Tiller with Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel 

What Is Tiller?

Tiller is a financial tool that connects your bank accounts to Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets, automatically importing transactions and balances. It streamlines the budgeting process by eliminating manual data entry.

Features and Benefits of Tiller for Budgeting

• Automatic Data Syncing: Real-time updates of your financial data.
• Customizable Templates: Offers templates like the Foundation Template to get started quickly.
• AutoCat: An automated categorization tool to organize transactions.
• Community Solutions (TCS): Access to additional tools and templates developed by the Tiller community.
• Security: Utilizes bank-grade encryption to protect your data.

Should You Use Tiller with Microsoft Excel or with Google Sheets? 

Click here to read our full guide to deciding whether to use Tiller with Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.

Comparing Tiller to Manual Budget Tracking with Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets

• Efficiency: Tiller saves time by automating data imports and categorization.
• Accuracy: Reduces the risk of manual entry errors.
• Cost: Tiller requires a subscription.

Tips for Maximizing Tiller’s Potential in Your Budgeting Workflow

• Regularly Review Transactions: Ensure all transactions are correctly categorized.
• Set Up Alerts: Use Tiller’s notifications for low balances or unusual activity.
• Explore Tiller Community Solutions: Enhance your budgeting with add-ons like debt trackers or net worth calculators. Note that some add-ons may be exclusive to either Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.

Feedback and Engagement

We hope this guide has been helpful in your journey toward choosing between Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets. We invite you to share your experiences, tips, or ask questions in the comments below. Your feedback is valuable and helps us improve our content.

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