You can use AI to summarize Excel spreadsheets. Here’s how

I really felt the need to find an easier way to navigate spreadsheet programs since I’m not the Excel expert here. I was hoping that artificial intelligence could reduce the workload, which led me to GPT Excel – after three failed attempts to integrate ChatGPT for Microsoft Excel, including clearing my cache and cookies.

GPT Excel is an AI assistant with over 500,000 users designed specifically for Excel and Google Sheets. Available in free and paid versions ($7 per month), GPT Excel’s features include AI chat, generate and understand formulas, task automation generator, SQL, data validation and filtering, and the ability to generate spreadsheet templates.

While this isn’t a particularly sophisticated tool, what it lacks in flashy add-ons it makes up for in simple and concise tools – which makes sense for something as robust as data (and its algorithms).

Since I was anxious to summarize and understand the data from the Excel spreadsheet, I focused on the formula page of the platform, where your data can be entered, then generated or explained.

How to summarize your table data using GPT Excel

This was my approach when trying to summarize the data from my table.

1. Create an account using your email address or Google Account. This will activate the free version of the platform. Once you’re on your account’s home page, navigate to and click Formulas.
2. Select “Microsoft Excel” from the drop-down menu, then go to the “Explained” tab at the top of the page. This will change the text of the copy and paste box below.
3. This will generate your result in the text box below. You can reset the copy process and enter new data or copy and paste that data back into the Excel spreadsheet.
4. Scroll down the page and be sure to check out the Best Practices tab for 12 do’s and don’ts that will help you ensure the best outcome during the data entry process.

Should you use GPT Excel?

Artificial intelligence is a new, hot topic. Its rapid growth speaks to its popularity and success, but consequently also to the reality of oversaturation.

I can’t help but feel that while AI-generated organizational tools are designed to reduce repetitive tasks and time spent solving problems, you might spend just as much time navigating between the incredibly niche aspects of each product to do that to find the best one for you.

While articles – like the one you are reading – are designed to help answer pre-asked questions, word of mouth is no more important than experience. Tools, whether literal or digital, always depend on individual preferences and opinions. My personal thoughts on GPT Excel can be boiled down to three things:

• Familiarity: Microsoft Excel was introduced in 1982 (under the name Multiplan) as a simple but reliable spreadsheet program that was constantly evolving to meet the needs of its consumers. Over 40 years later, when I found myself browsing through various Excel-focused AI tools, the tool with the word “Excel” naturally came to mind. My preference for artificial intelligence is the one with fewer gimmicks and a simpler, more streamlined approach.
• Simplicity: GPT Excel has six different tool features on its landing page, including one AI chat Click the button to help with spreadsheet questions. I turned to it Formulas Tab for generating and understanding data. The typography and user design were simple. Learning design integrations increases the time required to use the tool – which in turn defeats the purpose of the tool itself.
• Cost: The only difference between GPT Excel’s free and paid plans is priority access to customer service and AI chatbot. By this I mean the ability to be in dialogue with someone/thing. Since I accessed the tool solely to summarize my data, I was happy with this compromise. The free version of GPT Excel offers enough without having to add another subscription service to your list.

If you’re not sold on GPT Excel, there are plenty of other AI tools out there

Numerous artificial intelligence-based apps can aggregate your data. While I eventually turned to ChatGPT to have my Excel data summarized, these tools claim to offer their target audience the same services, which in some cases are identical to ChatGPT.

• Knowt: With student and teacher schedules available, this tool is focused on education. It’s capable of turning your Excel spreadsheet data into notes and flashcards and testing you on the information you enter – all in under 30 seconds. Knowt offers a seven-day free trial and monthly plans range from $2 to $13 per month.
• Ajelix BI:This app positions itself as an all-in-one platform with 15 productivity tools – 10 of which are Excel AI tools. The target audience is “busy people,” which includes small business owners, non-technical teams, and Mac and Windows users. The platform claims to reduce problem resolution time by 50% to generate smarter insights about data, faster. Ajelix BI has a free plan with limited access, up to an unlimited Business Plus plan of $200 per month.
• Julius AI: An AI tool for dense data sets. It can turn your data into visualizations, provide answers to your data, perform forecasting, solve problems in math, physics, and chemistry, and of course produce analysis and summaries. Julius AI is available in both a free and an upgraded plan version.
• Lines: This app presents itself as your “personal data analyst” with a focus on analyzing, summarizing and transforming data. The website states that Row includes the power of ChatGPT without any scripts, add-ons, or code. It also says it is capable of providing insights, classifying and labeling text, translating text into any language and running the initial stages of marketing campaigns. Rows’ pricing plans range from free to $30 per month, billed monthly or annually.