What is a Excel Spreadsheet

A Spreadsheet is a computer application that is designed to add, display, analyze, organize, and
manipulate data arranged in rows and columns. It is the most popular application for accounting,
analytics, data presentation, etc. In other words, spreadsheets are scalable grid-based files that are
used to organize data and perform calculations. People all across the world use spreadsheets to create
tables for personal and business usage.
You can also use the tool’s features and formulas to help you make sense of your data.
For example – You may track data in a spreadsheet and see sums, differences, multiplication,
division, and fill dates automatically, among other things. Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets,
Apache Open Office, LibreOffice, etc. are some spreadsheet software. Among all these
software, Microsoft Excel is the most commonly used spreadsheet tool and it is available
for Windows, macOS, Android, etc.
Excel offers a variety of functionalities, including Excel sheet unprotect options for safeguarding and
managing data. You can start with Excel spreadsheet templates to simplify your work, whether
you’re creating an Excel spreadsheet for project management or an Excel spreadsheet for
budgeting. The standard file format for Excel is the Excel file extension .xlsx, which ensures
compatibility and ease of use across different platforms.

What is an Excel Spreadsheet

A collection of spreadsheets is known as a workbook. Every Excel file is called a workbook. Every time
you start a new project in Excel, you’ll need to create a new workbook.
There are several methods for getting started with an Excel workbook. To create a new worksheet or
access an existing one, you can either start from scratch or utilize a pre-designed template. A single
Excel worksheet is a tabular spreadsheet that consists of a matrix of rectangular cells grouped in rows
and columns. It has a total of 1,048,576 rows and 16,384 columns, resulting in 17,179,869,184
cells on a single page of a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet where you may write, modify, and manage
your data.
In the same way as a file or a book is made up of one or more worksheets that contain various types of
related data, an Excel workbook is made up of one or more worksheets. You can also create and save
an endless number of worksheets. The major purpose is to collect all relevant data in one place but in
many categories (worksheet).
Features of Spreadsheet
As we know that there are so many spreadsheet applications available in the market. So these
applications provide the following basic features:
Rows and columns
Rows and columns are two distinct features in a spreadsheet that come together to make a cell, a
range, or a table. In general, columns are the vertical portion of an excel worksheet, and there can be
256 of them in a worksheet, whereas rows are the horizontal portion, and there can be 1048576 of
them.

The color light green is used to highlight Row 3 while the color green is used to highlight Column B.
Each column has 1048576 rows and each row has 256 columns.
Cell Formatting
Cell formatting in Microsoft Excel refers to the process of changing the appearance of cells in a
worksheet to improve readability, highlight important information, and make data presentation more
 visually appealing. Formatting can include changes to the font, color, borders, alignment, and number
formats of the cells.
Formulas
In spreadsheets, formulas process data automatically. It takes data from the specified area of the
spreadsheet as input then processes that data, and then displays the output into the new area of the
spreadsheet according to where the formula is written. In Excel, we can use formulas simply by typing
“=Formula Name(Arguments)” to use predefined Excel formulas. When you write the first few
characters of any formula, Excel displays a drop-down menu of formulas that match that character
sequence. Some of the commonly used formulas are:
 =SUM(Arg1: Arg2): It is used to find the sum of all the numeric data specified in the given range of
numbers.
 =COUNT(Arg1: Arg2): It is used to count all the number of cells(it will count only number) specified
in the given range of numbers.
 =MAX(Arg1: Arg2): It is used to find the maximum number from the given range of numbers.
 =MIN(Arg1: Arg2): It is used to find the minimum number from the given range of numbers.
 =TODAY(): It is used to find today’s date.
 =SQRT(Arg1): It is used to find the square root of the specified cell.
For example, you can use the formula to find the average of the integers in column C from row 2 to
row 7:
= AVERAGE(D2:D7)

The range of values on which you want to average is defined by D2:D6. The formula is located near the
name field on the formula tab.

We wrote =AVERAGE(D2:D6) in cell D9, therefore the average becomes (2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7)/6 =

27/6 = 4.5. So you can quickly create a workbook, work on it, browse through it, and save it in this
manner.
To Read more on Excel Formulas and Functions Click here
Pivot Table
The Pivot Table feature in Microsoft Excel is a powerful tool for data analysis and reporting. It allows
users to quickly summarize, analyze, and explore large sets of data by creating dynamic, interactive
tables. With Pivot Tables, you can easily reorganize and aggregate data to gain insights and present
information in a meaningful way.
Functions of SpreadSheet
In spreadsheets, the function uses a specified formula on the input and generates output. Or in other
words, functions are created to perform complicated math problems in spreadsheets without using
actual formulas. For example, if you want to find the total of the numeric data present in the column
then use the SUM function instead of adding all the values present in the column.
Text Manipulation
The spreadsheet provides various types of commands to manipulate the data present in it.
Pivot Tables: It is the most commonly used feature of the spreadsheet. Using this table users can
organize, group, total, or sort data using the toolbar. Or in other words, pivot tables are used to
summarize lots of data. It converts tons of data into a few rows and columns.
Uses of Spreadsheets
The use of Spreadsheets is endless. It is generally used with anything that contains numbers. Some of
the common use of spreadsheets are:
 Finance: Spreadsheets are used for financial data like it is used for checking account information,
taxes, transaction, billing, budgets, etc.
 Forms: A spreadsheet is used to create form templates to manage performance review,
timesheets, surveys, etc.
 School and colleges: Spreadsheets are most commonly used in schools and colleges to manage
student’s data like their attendance, grades, etc.
 Lists: Spreadsheets are also used to create lists like grocery lists, to-do lists, contact detail, etc.
 Hotels: Spreadsheets are also used in hotels to manage the data of their customers like their
personal information, room numbers, check-in date, check-out date, etc.
Components of Spreadsheets
The basic components of spreadsheets are:

1. TitleBar:
The title bar displays the name of the spreadsheet and application.
2. Toolbar:
It displays all the options or commands available in Excel for use.
3. NameBox:
It displays the address of the current or active cell.
4. Formula Bar:
It is used to display the data entered by us in the active cell. Also, this bar is used to apply formulas to
the data of the spreadsheet.
5. Column Headings:
Every Excel spreadsheet contains 256 columns and each column present in the spreadsheet is named
by letters or a combination of letters.
6. Row Headings:
Every Excel spreadsheet contains 65,536 rows and each row present in the spreadsheet is named by a
number.
7. Cell:
In a spreadsheet, everything like a numeric value, functions, expressions, etc., is recorded in the cell.
Or we can say that an intersection of rows and columns is known as a cell. Every cell has its own name
or address according to its column and rows and when the cursor is present on the first cell then that
cell is known as an active cell.
8. Cell referring:
A cell reference, also known as a cell address, is a way for describing a cell on a worksheet that
combines a column letter and a row number. We can refer to any cell on the worksheet using cell
references (in excel formulae). As shown in the above image the cell in column A and row 1 is referred
to as A1. Such notations can be used in any formula or to duplicate the value of one cell to another (by
using = A1).
9. Navigation buttons:
A spreadsheet contains first, previous, next, and last navigation buttons. These buttons are used to
move from one worksheet to another workbook.
10. Sheet tabs:
As we know that a workbook is a collection of worksheets. So this tab contains all the worksheets
present in the workbook, by default it contains three worksheets but you can add more according to
your requirement.
 How to Save the Workbook
In Excel we can save a workbook using the following steps:
Step 1: Click on the top-left, Microsoft office button and we get a drop-down menu:

Step 2: Now Save or Save As are the options to save the workbook, so choose one.
 Save As: To name the spreadsheet and then save it to a specific location. Select Save As if you
wish to save the file for the first time, or if you want to save it with a new name.
 Save: To save your work, select Save/ click ctrl + S if the file has already been named.
So this is how you can save a workbook in Excel.
Inserting text in Excel Spreadsheet
Excel consists of many rows and columns, each rectangular box in a row or column is referred to as a
Cell. So, the combination of a column letter and a row number can be used to find a cell address on a
worksheet or spreadsheet. We can refer to any cell in the worksheet using these addresses (in excel
formulas). The name box on the top left(below the Home tab) displays the cell’s address whenever you
click the cell.

To insert the data into the cell follow the following steps:
Step 1: Go to a cell and click on it
Step 2: By typing something on the keyboard, you can insert your data (In that selected cell).
Whatever text you type displays in the formula bar as well (for that cell).
Best Spreadhseet Applications
Below are some common spreadsheet application in excel
Microsoft Excel
As a component of the Microsoft Office suite and the cloud-based Microsoft 365 subscription service
(formerly known as Office 365), it is accessible on Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS platforms.
Google Sheet
Google Sheets is free and also available as a desktop application for Google Chrome OS and assorted
mobile OSes, such as Android and iOS.
Google Sheet Vs MS Excel
Below are some differences between Google Sheet and Microsoft Excel.
Feature Google Sheets Microsoft Excel

Platform Windows, macOS, Web-based,

Web-based, Android, iOS
Availability Android, iOS

Real-time collaboration, multiple Real-time collaboration with

Collaboration
users can edit simultaneously Microsoft 365, file sharing

Limited offline access through Full offline access with desktop

Offline Access
browser extensions application

Google Drive (15 GB free, paid OneDrive (5 GB free, paid plans

Storage
plans available) available)

Formulas and Extensive, supports many Excel Extensive, industry-standard for

Functions functions advanced functions

Add-ons and Supports Google Workspace

Supports Office Add-ins
Extensions Marketplace add-ons

Basic to intermediate charting Advanced charting, Power BI

Data Visualization
and graphing tools integration

Data Analysis Basic pivot tables, filters, Advanced pivot tables, Power
Tools conditional formatting Query, data models
 Feature Google Sheets Microsoft Excel

Scripting and VBA (Visual Basic for

Google Apps Script
Automation Applications), Office Scripts

Templates Available via template gallery Extensive template library

Integration with Seamless integration with other Seamless integration with other
Other Tools Google apps (Docs, Slides) Office apps (Word, PowerPoint)