How to Sync Microsoft Excel with Google Sheets
This guide will show you how to sync Microsoft Excel with Google Sheets automatically through Unito’s 2-way no-code integration for spreadsheets. Connecting Excel and Google Sheets with automation eliminates the need to manually copy paste data between different spreadsheets. This can be useful for building performance reports, managing human resources, analyzing financial details, handling operations management, reviewing project status and so on.
If you’d like to learn more about Unito before proceeding, check out our integration overview for Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets. By the end of this guide, you’ll be able to:
- Generate new rows in either Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel based on activity in the other.
- Keep your spreadsheets automatically up-to-date in a real-time two-way sync with a simple set of code-free instructions.
Here’s an example of our synced Excel and Google Sheets tables:
Why sync Microsoft Excel to Google Sheets with Unito?
Syncing Microsoft Excel to Google Sheets with Unito enables you to automatically populate any spreadsheet with data from another. This makes reporting far simpler since you can skip copy-pasting between tables and spend more time on high-skill tasks that need your attention.
There are a wide variety of business use cases for any team that relies on spreadsheets, including: marketing agencies, freelance entrepreneurs, consultants, professional service providers, sales teams and others. This automation solution could be used to avoid sending vendors PDFs which quickly become obsolete; oversee budget or resource management; ensure billable hours and costs are on par with forecasts as a project progresses; sync records such as contact or client information to a single spreadsheet; etc.
NOTE: The header row of each sheet will become mappable fields in Unito, so make sure to clearly identify each column in the first row.
Before you sync Microsoft Excel with Google Sheets:
- You’ll need an account in both tools with the right permissions to access and modify data.
- Install the Unito add-on for Microsoft Excel Online and Google Sheets. This walkthrough includes instructions for each, or you can follow the links above.
- Create a header row to help Unito identify the data in your columns.
Contents
Feel free to skip ahead if you’ve already completed some of the steps below:
Step 1. Add header rows to your spreadsheets
Step 2. Install the Google Sheets Add-on
Step 3. Install the Microsoft Excel Add-in
Step 4. Connect Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets with Unito
Step 5. Set flow direction between Excel and Google Sheets
Step 6. Set rules to filter data between your spreadsheets
Step 7. Select field mappings based on header rows
Step 1. Add header rows to your spreadsheets
When you sync row data between spreadsheets, those rows will be matched to specific columns. Unito uses the table header to figure out what counts as a field and what doesn’t. Go to the first row in both Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel and make sure each column has a clearly labelled title. If you don’t know how to categorize the data you want synced, you can use our Google Sheets template and/or Microsoft Excel template to get started.
If you use our Excel template, just be sure to download it and then re-upload it to your own One Drive folder first.
Step 2. Install the Unito add-on to your Google Workspace
Go to docs.google.com and open up your spreadsheet. At the top of your Google Sheet, click Extensions, then Add-ons, and select Get add-ons. Search for “Unito for Google Sheets” and add it to your workspace by following the on-screen instructions.
Step 3. Install the Unito add-in for Microsoft Excel
Visit www.office.com and open Excel Online. Then, click Insert at the top of your spreadsheet and select Add-ins on the right-hand side.
Select store, then search for Unito for Excel and click add. Follow the on-screen instructions to add Unito to your Microsoft workspace. Once the add-in is installed, click Insert the two columns in this sheet.
Step 4. Connect Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets with Unito
Navigate to the Unito App and select +Create Flow. On the next screen, select Start Here to connect Microsoft Excel Online and Google Sheets. We’ll begin our demo with Google Sheets on the left, and Microsoft Excel on the right. You’ll need to specify which account and sheet you want to sync with Unito.
Step 5. Set flow direction between Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets
Flow direction determines how new rows are created but not modified in your spreadsheets. So if we choose a 1-way flow to Excel, that would mean adding any new rows in Google Sheets would add identical rows to your Excel spreadsheet, but not the other way around.
Click Confirm when you’ve chosen a flow direction.
Step 6. Set rules to filter data between your spreadsheets
Rules determine which triggers cause rows to be created in your other spreadsheet tool. You can use rules to filter out unwanted rows from syncing. Here’s how it works:
Sync a column if it has a value. Imagine one title in your header row is called “Priority” and you only want to sync columns that have been prioritized.
Next, Add a new trigger, search for the field “Priority” and select it. Then Select a value and choose Any value. This tells Unito to only sync fields from rows in which “Priority” has a value. That value can be anything you choose: an X, “yes”, a filled-in checkbox, etc.
When you’re ready, you can click confirm to proceed to field mappings.
Step 7. Select field mappings based on header rows
Similarly to Step 2, we can give individual field mappings their own flow direction. These allow us to decide exactly which rows will sync between Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel. The options are based on your header row names. Each field can be synced one-way — from either tool to the other — or bidirectionally.
If you select Auto-map, Unito will pre-populate a list of suggested field mappings which you can then adjust. If you know exactly how you want your fields mapped, Start from scratch.
If you choose a one-way field sync, only the changes made to your source field will appear in the destination field. With a two-way field sync, any change in either spreadsheet will appear in the other for the specified field.
Click Select a field for each tool, and find the appropriate field to map.
You could set a one-way flow for certain fields so that only changes in the source spreadsheet affect the other. You might find this useful if you needed to provide an external contact with an update in their spreadsheet, but not allow their changes to affect yours.
Click Confirm when you’re satisfied with your field mappings to proceed.
Find out more about setting field mappings.
Step 8. Save and close to launch your flow between Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel
And that’s it! Follow the remaining instructions to complete your flow and it should start syncing momentarily. Congratulations!
If you’ve followed the steps above, your flow will now add rows in either Google Sheets and/or Microsoft Excel based on rows added in the other.
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out and let us know.
What’s next?
- Learn how to duplicate this flow to suit other use cases you may have in mind.
- Read our Microsoft Excel primer and Google Sheets primer to better understand each integration’s capabilities and limitations.
- Connect Google Sheets to HubSpot to streamline sales reporting.
- Try syncing Google Calendar to Trello, Asana, or Notion.