Microsoft Excel is an indispensable tool for data management and analysis. In collaborative environments or when tracking changes over time, comparing Excel sheets becomes crucial. Whether you need to audit modifications, merge data, or simply understand the evolution of your spreadsheets, knowing how to effectively compare Excel sheets is a valuable skill. This guide will walk you through using Microsoft Spreadsheet Compare, a powerful tool designed to highlight the differences between Excel workbooks, ensuring data accuracy and streamlining your workflow.
To leverage the full capabilities of Spreadsheet Compare, it’s important to note that this tool is included with specific Microsoft Office suites: Office Professional Plus 2013, Office Professional Plus 2016, Office Professional Plus 2019, and Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise. Ensure you have one of these versions to proceed with the steps outlined below.
Step-by-Step Guide to Comparing Excel Sheets
Spreadsheet Compare offers a straightforward approach to pinpointing discrepancies between two Excel workbooks. Follow these steps to initiate and interpret your comparison:
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Launch Spreadsheet Compare: Begin by opening the Spreadsheet Compare application. This is your central hub for initiating the comparison process.
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Customize Comparison Options: Located in the lower-left pane, you’ll find a range of options to tailor your comparison. Decide what elements you want to include in your analysis. You can choose to compare formulas, cell formatting, macros, and more. For a comprehensive comparison, simply click “Select All“. This ensures all aspects of your workbooks are examined for differences.
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Initiate File Selection: Navigate to the “Home” tab within Spreadsheet Compare and click on “Compare Files“. This action opens the “Compare Files” dialog box, prompting you to specify the workbooks for comparison.
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Choose the Original Workbook: In the “Compare” row of the dialog box, use the browse button to locate and select the earlier version of your Excel workbook. Spreadsheet Compare is versatile, allowing you to select files from your local computer, network locations, or even by entering a web address if your workbooks are stored online.
Alt text: Browse button icon for selecting the original Excel workbook in Spreadsheet Compare.
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Select the Revised Workbook: In the “To” row, click the browse button to choose the more recent version of the workbook you want to compare against the original. This is the file that will be scrutinized for changes relative to the earlier version.
Alt text: Browse button icon for selecting the revised Excel workbook for comparison.
Note: Spreadsheet Compare is capable of comparing two files even if they share the same name, provided they are saved in different folders. This is particularly useful for version control scenarios.
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Execute the Comparison: Click “OK” to initiate the comparison process. Spreadsheet Compare will analyze the selected workbooks based on your chosen options and generate a detailed report of the differences.
Note: If you encounter an “Unable to open workbook” message, it’s likely that one or both of the workbooks are password-protected. Click “OK” to dismiss the message, and you will be prompted to enter the password(s). For more information on password handling in Spreadsheet Compare, refer to how passwords and Spreadsheet Compare work together. This resource provides guidance on managing password-protected files within the tool.
Understanding the Comparison Results
The comparison results are displayed in an intuitive two-pane grid, making it easy to visualize the differences.
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Side-by-Side View: The workbook you selected as the “Compare” file (the earlier version) is presented on the left pane, while the “To” file (the revised version) is displayed on the right. Below these grids, a details pane provides a summary of the changes identified.
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Worksheet Alignment: Spreadsheet Compare intelligently aligns worksheets for comparison. It starts by comparing the leftmost worksheet in each workbook and proceeds sequentially. Even hidden worksheets are included in the comparison and displayed in Spreadsheet Compare, ensuring no changes are overlooked.
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Cell Content Visibility: If cell contents are truncated due to narrow column widths, simply click “Resize Cells to Fit” . This feature automatically adjusts column widths to ensure you can view the complete content of each cell.
Alt text: Resize Cells to Fit button icon for adjusting column widths in Spreadsheet Compare.
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Color-Coded Differences: Differences are highlighted using distinct colors to categorize the type of change. For instance, cells containing “entered values” (cells with direct input, not formulas) are typically marked with a green fill color in the side-by-side grid and a green font in the results list pane. The lower-left pane includes a legend explaining the color-coding system, allowing you to quickly interpret the nature of each change.
Leveraging Comparison Results Further
Spreadsheet Compare offers options to extend the utility of your comparison results beyond the initial display.
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Exporting Results: For record-keeping or in-depth analysis, you can export the comparison results to an Excel file. Click “Home > Export Results“. This generates a new Excel file that summarizes the detected differences in a readily shareable and analyzable format.
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Copying Results: To integrate the comparison data into other documents or applications, you can copy the results to the clipboard. Click “Home > Copy Results to Clipboard“. This allows you to paste the comparison information into programs like Microsoft Word for reporting or further documentation.
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Displaying Workbook Colors: If preserving the original formatting of the workbooks is important for your analysis, click “Home > Show Workbook Colors“. This option displays the cell formatting as it appears in Excel, providing a high-fidelity visual representation of each worksheet within the comparison view.
Why Compare Excel Workbooks? Practical Applications
Comparing Excel workbooks is not just about identifying changes; it serves various critical purposes across different scenarios:
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Audit Trails and Compliance: Organizations undergoing audits often require a clear history of changes to critical workbooks. Spreadsheet Compare provides an invaluable audit trail, showing month-over-month or year-over-year modifications. This proactive approach enables you to identify and rectify errors before they are flagged by auditors, ensuring data integrity and compliance.
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VBA Code Comparison: Beyond worksheet content, Spreadsheet Compare can also analyze differences in VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) code embedded within Excel workbooks. The results are presented in a dedicated window, allowing for a side-by-side examination of code modifications. This is crucial for maintaining and debugging Excel-based applications and macros.
By mastering How To Compare Excel Sheets using tools like Microsoft Spreadsheet Compare, you equip yourself with a powerful capability for data management, quality control, and collaboration, ultimately enhancing your efficiency and accuracy when working with spreadsheets.
