What is Microsoft Excel?

Microsoft Excel is a powerful spreadsheet application developed by Microsoft Corporation. Think of it as an incredibly smart digital notebook made up of rows and columns that can store, organize, calculate, and analyze data. Unlike a regular notebook where you write by hand, Excel allows you to type information into individual boxes called cells, and then perform impressive calculations and analysis with that information automatically.

At its core, Excel is designed to help you work with numbers and text in an organized, grid-like format. Imagine a giant table with thousands of boxes where you can store anything from simple grocery lists to complex financial models used by Fortune 500 companies. That is essentially what Excel provides you, and so much more.

The word "spreadsheet" comes from the accounting world, where accountants traditionally used large sheets of paper spread across their desks to organize financial data. Excel digitized this concept and added computational superpowers to it. Today, Excel is used by over 750 million people worldwide, making it one of the most widely used software applications in history.

A Brief History of Excel

Microsoft Excel was first released in 1985 for Apple Macintosh computers. The Windows version arrived in 1987. Over the decades, Excel has evolved tremendously, adding features like charts, pivot tables, macros, and cloud collaboration. Today's Excel, which is part of Microsoft 365, includes artificial intelligence features that can help you analyze data automatically and even suggest formulas.

Despite the emergence of Google Sheets and other alternatives, Microsoft Excel remains the gold standard for spreadsheet applications in business, education, and personal use. Learning Excel opens doors that other spreadsheet tools simply cannot match.

Why Should You Learn Excel?

You might be wondering whether learning Excel is worth your time. The answer is a resounding yes, and here is why this skill is absolutely essential in today's competitive world.

Excel Skills Are in High Demand

According to multiple job market studies, Microsoft Excel proficiency appears in job requirements across virtually every industry. From entry-level positions to senior management roles, employers expect candidates to have at least basic Excel knowledge. In fact, many job postings list Excel as a required skill, not just a preferred one.

Excel Saves You Time

Imagine you need to add up 500 numbers. Doing this manually would take considerable time and you would likely make errors. In Excel, you can add all 500 numbers in literally one second using a simple formula called SUM. This time-saving benefit multiplies across every task you perform, from budgeting to data analysis to reporting.

Excel Reduces Human Errors

When performing calculations by hand or even with a basic calculator, humans inevitably make mistakes. Excel performs calculations with perfect accuracy every single time. Once you set up a formula correctly, it will produce the right result without fail, even if you change the underlying data. This reliability is why accountants, engineers, and scientists trust Excel with critical calculations.

What Can You Do With Excel?

The versatility of Microsoft Excel is truly remarkable. Here are some of the most common ways people use Excel in their personal and professional lives every single day.

This table only scratches the surface of what is possible. Excel can be used for wedding planning, fitness tracking, recipe management, scientific calculations, engineering simulations, and countless other applications. If it involves organizing or calculating information, Excel can help you do it better and faster.

Understanding Excel Versions

Before you start learning, it helps to understand the different versions of Excel available today. Do not worry if you do not have the latest version. The core concepts you will learn in this course apply to all modern versions of Excel.

Desktop Versions of Excel

• Excel 2016 — Released in 2015, still widely used in many organizations
• Excel 2019 — One-time purchase version with solid features
• Excel 2021 — Latest one-time purchase version
• Excel for Microsoft 365 — Subscription-based, always updated with newest features

Online and Mobile Versions

• Excel Online — Free web-based version accessible through any browser
• Excel Mobile — Apps for iOS and Android tablets and phones

How to Open Microsoft Excel

Let us get practical now. Here is how you can open Microsoft Excel on your computer using different methods. Choose whichever method is most convenient for you.

Method 1: Using the Start Menu (Windows)

1. Click the Start button in the bottom-left corner of your screen (the Windows icon)
2. Type "Excel" in the search box that appears
3. Click on "Excel" when it appears in the search results
4. Excel will open and you will see the Start screen

Method 2: Using a Desktop Shortcut

If you have an Excel shortcut on your desktop, simply double-click the Excel icon. The icon looks like a green "X" on a white document background. This is the fastest method if you have the shortcut available.

Method 3: Opening from an Existing File

If someone has sent you an Excel file (with .xlsx or .xls extension), you can double-click the file directly. This will open both Excel and that specific file simultaneously, which is very convenient when you need to work on a shared document.

Method 4: Excel Online (Free)

1. Open your web browser (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Safari)
2. Navigate to office.com
3. Sign in with your Microsoft account (you can create one for free if needed)
4. Click on the Excel icon from the available apps

Your First Look at the Excel Interface

When you open Excel, you will first see the Start screen. This screen provides options to create a new blank workbook, open recent files, or choose from professionally designed templates. For now, let us create a new blank workbook to explore the interface.

Creating a New Blank Workbook

On the Start screen, click "Blank workbook" in the top-left area. This creates a fresh, empty spreadsheet where you can begin working immediately.

Once you click "Blank workbook," the main Excel window opens. This is where all the magic happens. Take a moment to look at all the different areas on your screen. In the next section, we will explore each component in detail so you know exactly what everything does.

Key Components of the Excel Window

The Excel interface might look overwhelming at first with so many buttons and options, but each element has a specific purpose. Let us break down the main components you will see on your screen.

1. Title Bar

Located at the very top of the window, the Title Bar displays the name of your workbook. A new workbook will show "Book1" until you save it with your own name. The Title Bar also contains the window control buttons (minimize, maximize, close) on the right side.

2. Quick Access Toolbar

This small toolbar sits above or below the Ribbon and contains frequently used commands like Save, Undo, and Redo. You can customize this toolbar by adding any commands you use often to speed up your workflow.

3. The Ribbon

The Ribbon is the wide band of buttons and tools below the Title Bar. It is organized into tabs such as Home, Insert, Page Layout, Formulas, Data, Review, and View. Each tab contains groups of related commands. For example, the Home tab contains formatting options while the Insert tab lets you add charts, tables, and images.

4. Name Box

Located to the left of the Formula Bar, the Name Box shows the address of the currently selected cell (like A1, B5, or C10). You can also type a cell address here and press Enter to jump directly to that cell, which is very useful in large spreadsheets.

5. Formula Bar

This horizontal bar shows the contents of the currently selected cell. When you type a formula, it appears both in the cell and in the Formula Bar. You can edit cell contents directly in the Formula Bar, which is especially helpful for long formulas.

6. Column Headers

The letters (A, B, C, D...) running across the top of the worksheet identify each column. Excel columns go from A to Z, then AA, AB, and so on, up to XFD. That is a total of 16,384 columns available in each worksheet!

7. Row Headers

The numbers (1, 2, 3, 4...) running down the left side identify each row. Excel rows go from 1 to 1,048,576. That is over one million rows available for your data!

8. Worksheet Grid (Cells)

The main area where rows and columns intersect to form individual cells. Each cell is identified by its column letter and row number (for example, cell B3 is in column B, row 3). This grid is where you enter all your data.

9. Sheet Tabs

At the bottom of the window, you will see tabs labeled "Sheet1," "Sheet2," etc. These tabs let you navigate between multiple worksheets within the same workbook. Think of sheets as pages in a notebook, all bundled together in one file.

10. Status Bar

The bar at the very bottom of the window displays information about your current task, shows quick calculations for selected data (sum, average, count), and contains view buttons and zoom controls for adjusting how you see your spreadsheet.

Understanding Cells, Rows, and Columns

The cell is the fundamental building block of Excel. Understanding how cells work is absolutely crucial before you start entering data or creating formulas. Let us explore this essential concept in detail.

What is a Cell?

A cell is a single rectangular box where a column and row intersect. Every cell has a unique address, also called a cell reference. The cell reference combines the column letter and row number. For example:

• A1 — The cell in column A, row 1 (this is the top-left corner cell)
• B5 — The cell in column B, row 5
• D10 — The cell in column D, row 10
• AA100 — The cell in column AA, row 100

The Active Cell

The active cell is the currently selected cell, highlighted with a dark green border. Whatever you type will be entered into the active cell. You can identify the active cell by:

• The dark border surrounding it
• Its address displayed in the Name Box
• The highlighted column letter and row number

Selecting Cells

To select a single cell, simply click on it with your mouse. To select multiple cells, click and drag your mouse across the cells you want to select. You will learn more advanced selection techniques in a later lesson.

What Can You Put in a Cell?

Each cell can contain one of three types of data. Understanding these data types is important because Excel treats them differently:

Practice Exercise: Explore the Excel Interface

Now it is time to put your new knowledge into practice! Complete this simple exercise to become familiar with the Excel interface. Do not worry about making mistakes. Exploration is the best way to learn.

Your Task

1. Open Microsoft Excel using any of the methods described earlier in this lesson
2. Create a new blank workbook by clicking "Blank workbook" on the Start screen
3. Click on cell A1 — notice how it becomes highlighted and its address appears in the Name Box
4. Type your first name and press Enter — your text appears in cell A1 and the active cell moves to A2
5. In cell A2, type any number (like 100 or 42) and press Enter to confirm
6. Click on different tabs in the Ribbon (Home, Insert, Page Layout) to see what tools are available in each
7. Look at the sheet tabs at the bottom — try right-clicking on "Sheet1" to see available options like Rename and Delete
8. Close Excel — when prompted to save, click "Don't Save" for now (we will learn about saving properly in Lesson 3)