Instructions for using AI to analyze Excel data

Microsoft’s AI Copilot has been deployed across its core application suite, including the Excel spreadsheet platform. Now people can use Excel with its own AI assistant to analyze data and help them do more with their spreadsheets.

In this article, let’s find out How to use Microsoft’s AI Copilot to analyze Excel data makes work with spreadsheets much simpler.

The basics of working with Copilot in Excel

If you plan to use Copilot as an AI tool to analyze Excel data, users need to first learn the core rules and functions of this tool. For example, this tool works best with data in tables. Luckily, people don’t have to create tables themselves – Copilot can do it:

Step 1: Launch Excel and open the workbook you want to use Copilot.

Step 2: Find and tap the button Copilot on tabs Home at the top of the page.

Step 3: User can highlight his data and press Ctrl + T to convert to a table, or simply ask Copilot to do it through the Copilot side menu.

Once the data is in the table, people can use the buttons and suggestions found in the Copilot menu to work with the data in different ways. For example, Copilot can highlight key parts of data, add new formulas, sort or filter data, etc. Users are also free to enter their own specific requirements, if they Does not appear in the suggestions yet.

Use Copilot AI to analyze Excel

One of the most impressive features of Copilot as a free AI tool for Excel spreadsheets is its ability to read and understand data, spot trends that humans might not notice, or save time for complex analytical tasks.

To take full advantage of these features, click the button Analyze in the Copilot tab. If not, just click the button Show data insights. This will trigger Copilot to create some visuals to represent the data, such as charts and graphs.

More specific queries

With Show data insightsusers can get charts and tables instantly. If you need more specific images, all you need to do is chat with Copilot and ask for what you want. Just enter a command, such as creating a pivot table showing profit/loss for Q2-Q4, and it will execute.

The question “What If?”

Copilot is even capable of delving into the imagination, answering “What If?” and create hypothetical situations. Let’s say you have a fully laid out budget for your small business, with columns for profits, losses, expenses, sales, etc.

For example, users could ask Copilot to imagine how profits could grow next year if they halved spending in certain areas and increased conversion rates by 10%.

Alternative image

Sometimes, Copilot may not produce exactly the type of image a user needs on the first try. This is especially likely when working with complex data sets involving many different categories and entries. Luckily, people just need to ask it to create the specific type of chart or graph they need, input the exact data and how they want it presented, all through AI chat.

Use other AI-powered Excel add-ons

Copilot is a great AI-powered tool for Excel. But this isn’t the only AI tool people can use to analyze spreadsheets. Excel versions from 2019 onwards support add-ins, accessible through the Add-in Store on the Homepage tab. There are several AI-powered add-ons that can perform AI functions with the help of AI.

For example, users can use ChatGPT to analyze Excel data. People can also integrate ChatGPT with Excel to do this, then use ChatGPT’s predictive analytics and pattern detection capabilities to scan data and extract insights quickly.