Excel and Google Sheets can both handle budgets, lists, reports,
calculations and operational data. The better choice depends less on
which product is "better" and more on how your organisation works.
Excel: powerful and mature
Microsoft Excel remains an excellent choice for complex analysis.
It is particularly strong when you need:
- Advanced formulas.
- Large and complex workbooks.
- Pivot tables and analytical tools.
- Power Query and data transformation.
- Advanced desktop functionality.
- Existing Microsoft 365 integration.
- Work that must continue without an internet connection.
For finance, modelling and advanced analysis, Excel can be difficult to
beat.
Google Sheets: collaboration first
Google Sheets is especially useful when several people need to work on
the same information.
Its strengths include:
- Real-time collaboration.
- Easy sharing.
- Version history.
- Simple access from different devices.
- Integration with Google Forms.
- Integration with Google Drive.
- Automation through Google Apps Script.
- Easy connection to other Google Workspace tools.
For teams already using Google Workspace, Sheets can become a practical
operational platform rather than simply a spreadsheet application.
Which is better for your organisation?
Consider your working environment.
Choose Excel when your organisation depends heavily on advanced desktop
analysis, complex financial modelling or Microsoft-specific workflows.
Choose Google Sheets when collaboration, shared access, cloud storage
and integration with Google Workspace are more important.
What about security?
Neither tool should be treated as automatically secure simply because it
is made by a major technology company.
Security depends on how your organisation configures accounts,
permissions, sharing, devices and data access.
A well-managed Google Sheet can be more secure than a badly managed
Excel file shared through email.
What about automation?
Both platforms can be automated, but their ecosystems are different.
Excel can work with Power Automate, Office Scripts, VBA and Microsoft
365 services.
Google Sheets can work with Google Apps Script, Forms, Drive, Gmail and
other Workspace services.
If your organisation already operates heavily inside Google Workspace,
Google Sheets often provides a simpler route to workflow automation.
The most important question
Do not ask only, "Should we use Excel or Google Sheets?"
Ask:
What are we trying to accomplish with the spreadsheet?
If the answer is budgeting, reporting or analysis, either platform may
work.
If the answer is managing an operational process involving many people,
you may eventually need something beyond a spreadsheet.
Final thought
Excel and Google Sheets are not competing choices in every organisation.
Many teams can use both.
The right decision is the one that fits your users, existing technology,
collaboration requirements and the complexity of your data.
Trygg Montis can help assess your current workflow and determine whether
Excel, Google Sheets, automation or a database-backed application is the
most appropriate option.