How to Use AI in Excel and Google Sheets: A Practical Comparison

AI Has Arrived in Spreadsheets — But Not Equally

Spreadsheets are the backbone of business data work. From financial models to marketing dashboards to inventory tracking, hundreds of millions of people rely on Excel and Google Sheets daily.

Both platforms have started integrating AI, but they have taken very different paths. Microsoft built Copilot directly into Excel as part of Microsoft 365. Google has added some AI features to Sheets natively but relies heavily on its add-on ecosystem for advanced AI functionality.

If you are trying to figure out where AI in spreadsheets stands today and which platform gives you more power, this guide covers everything. We will look at what each platform offers, how to get started, and where the real advantages lie.

AI in Microsoft Excel: Copilot

What Is Excel Copilot?

Excel Copilot is Microsoft's AI assistant built into Excel as part of the Microsoft 365 subscription. It uses OpenAI's models to help you analyze data, generate formulas, create charts, and answer questions about your spreadsheet.

What Copilot Can Do

• Ask questions about your data — "What was total revenue in Q3?" and Copilot generates the answer
• Generate formulas — Describe what you want in plain English and Copilot writes the formula
• Create charts — Ask for a visualization and Copilot builds it
• Highlight and sort data — Request conditional formatting or sorting rules
• Suggest insights — Copilot can surface patterns or anomalies in your data

What Copilot Cannot Do (Yet)

• Process text at scale — Copilot is not designed for row-by-row text processing like classification, extraction, or generation
• Batch operations — You cannot apply AI to every row in a column the way you would with a formula
• Choose your AI model — You get whatever model Microsoft provides. No option to use Claude, Gemini, or other providers
• Work with custom functions — Copilot operates through a chat interface, not through spreadsheet functions you can embed in cells

How to Use Copilot in Excel

1. Make sure you have a Microsoft 365 subscription that includes Copilot (Business or Enterprise tier)
2. Open Excel and load your data into a formatted table (Copilot works best with structured tables)
3. Click the Copilot button in the ribbon
4. Type your request in natural language

Example prompts:

• "Add a column that calculates the profit margin for each row"
• "What are the top 5 customers by revenue?"
• "Create a bar chart comparing monthly sales"

Copilot Pricing

Copilot requires Microsoft 365 plus an additional Copilot license, which runs around $30/user/month on top of the base Microsoft 365 subscription. For an individual, that is roughly $50-60/month total. For teams, the cost adds up quickly.

AI in Google Sheets: The Add-On Approach

Native AI in Google Sheets

Google has added some AI features to Sheets natively:

• Smart Fill — Detects patterns in your data and suggests autocomplete. Similar to Flash Fill in Excel but more limited
• Explore — Asks questions about your data and generates charts or pivot tables. Useful but basic
• Help me organize — Generates starter templates for common spreadsheet types

These native features are helpful for simple tasks, but they fall short for serious AI-powered workflows. They cannot classify text, generate content, extract structured data, or process rows at scale.

SheetAI: AI Functions for Google Sheets

This is where add-ons like SheetAI transform the experience. SheetAI brings AI directly into your spreadsheet as functions — just like SUM or VLOOKUP, but powered by large language models.

Here is what that looks like in practice:

General AI queries:

=SHEETAI("Write a tagline for a coffee shop called Morning Ritual")

Classification:

=SHEETAI_CLASSIFY(A2, "Positive, Negative, Neutral")

Data extraction:

=SHEETAI_EXTRACT(A2, "name, email, phone_number")

Context-aware AI:

=SHEETAI_BRAIN("Based on this customer's purchase history, suggest a product", B2:B20)

Pattern learning:

=SHEETAI_FILL(A1:B5, C2)

The key difference from Copilot: these are cell-level functions. You write the formula once and drag it down to apply AI to every row in your dataset. That makes Google Sheets with SheetAI far more powerful for batch processing and data transformation.

Getting Started with SheetAI

1. Open Google Sheets
2. Go to Extensions > Add-ons > Get add-ons
3. Search for SheetAI and install it
4. Open the SheetAI sidebar and add your API key (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, or xAI)
5. Start using AI functions in your cells

Feature Comparison: Excel Copilot vs. Google Sheets + SheetAI

Which Is Better for AI Workflows?

The answer depends on what you mean by "AI workflows."

Excel Copilot Is Better For:

Ad-hoc analysis and exploration. If you have a dataset and want to ask questions about it, generate quick charts, or get formula suggestions, Copilot is genuinely useful. It feels like having an analyst sitting next to you who can answer questions about your data instantly.

Formula generation. Copilot is excellent at translating plain-English descriptions into Excel formulas, including complex nested formulas that would take time to write manually.

Users who do not want to learn new functions. Since Copilot uses a chat interface, there is no new syntax to learn. You just describe what you want.

Google Sheets + SheetAI Is Better For:

Batch text processing. Any task where you need to apply AI to every row — classification, content generation, data extraction, summarization — is better suited to the cell-function approach. Write the formula once, drag it down to 10,000 rows.

Multi-model flexibility. With SheetAI, you choose the AI model for each task. Use GPT-4o for creative writing, Claude for analysis, Gemini Flash for speed. Excel Copilot gives you no choice.

Cost efficiency. Copilot costs $30/user/month regardless of usage. SheetAI with a bring-your-own-key model means you pay only for what you use. For a team of 10 where only a few use AI heavily, the savings are substantial.

Structured AI outputs. Functions like SHEETAI_CLASSIFY, SHEETAI_EXTRACT, and SHEETAI_TABLE produce structured, predictable outputs that you can use in downstream formulas, pivot tables, and dashboards.

Automation workflows. Google Sheets integrates with Google Apps Script, Zapier, and Make. You can build automated pipelines where data flows in, gets processed by SheetAI functions, and triggers downstream actions — all without manual intervention.

Practical Examples

Example 1: Sentiment Analysis on Customer Reviews

In Excel with Copilot: You can ask Copilot to analyze sentiment, but it works on the dataset as a whole, not row by row. You might get a summary like "60% of reviews are positive" but not a per-row sentiment label.

In Google Sheets with SheetAI:

=SHEETAI_CLASSIFY(A2, "Positive, Negative, Neutral")

Drag down to classify every review individually. Now you have a filterable, sortable sentiment column.

Example 2: Writing Product Descriptions

In Excel with Copilot: You could ask Copilot to write a product description, but it would do so in the chat panel, not in a cell. You would need to manually copy the output into your spreadsheet. Doing this for 200 products is not practical.

In Google Sheets with SheetAI:

=SHEETAI("Write a 50-word product description for: " & A2 & ". Key features: " & B2)

The description appears directly in the cell. Drag down for all 200 products. Done in minutes.

Example 3: Extracting Data from Unstructured Text

Imagine you have a column of email snippets and you need to extract the sender name, date, and topic.

In Excel with Copilot: No built-in support for row-level extraction. You would need to ask about each email individually in the chat.

In Google Sheets with SheetAI:

=SHEETAI_EXTRACT(A2, "sender_name, date, topic")

Clean structured output for every row.

Example 4: Formula Generation

In Excel with Copilot: "Create a formula that calculates the weighted average of column B using column C as weights" — Copilot generates the formula and inserts it. This is Copilot's strength.

In Google Sheets with SheetAI: Formula generation is not SheetAI's primary use case. Google Sheets' native Explore feature handles basic formula suggestions, and you can use SheetAI for complex formula help, but Copilot has the edge here.

The Hybrid Approach

You do not have to choose one platform exclusively. Many teams use both:

• Excel for financial modeling, complex calculations, and desktop workflows where Copilot adds value
• Google Sheets for collaborative data processing, content generation, and classification workflows where SheetAI's cell functions are more practical

The key is matching the tool to the task. Use Copilot when you need to explore data conversationally. Use SheetAI when you need to process data at row level.

Cost Comparison for a Typical Team

Let's compare costs for a team of 5 people processing moderate amounts of data:

Excel Copilot

• Microsoft 365 Business Standard: ~$12.50/user/month
• Copilot add-on: ~$30/user/month
• Total: ~$212.50/month for 5 users
• Same cost regardless of usage

Google Sheets + SheetAI

• Google Workspace Business Starter: ~$7/user/month
• SheetAI: Free tier available, paid plans for additional features
• API costs: Variable based on usage (typically $5-50/month for moderate use)
• Total: ~$45-90/month for 5 users with moderate AI usage

For teams doing significant AI work in spreadsheets, the cost difference is meaningful. And with SheetAI, you are paying for actual usage rather than a flat fee per seat.

Getting the Most Out of AI in Spreadsheets

Regardless of which platform you choose, here are some tips for effective AI use in spreadsheets:

1. Structure Your Data First

AI works best with clean, structured data. Make sure your columns have headers, your data types are consistent, and there are no merged cells.

2. Start with a Small Sample

Test AI functions on 10-20 rows before scaling to your full dataset. This lets you refine prompts and catch issues early.

3. Be Specific in Your Prompts

"Summarize this" produces vague results. "Write a 2-sentence summary focusing on the main complaint and suggested resolution" produces useful output.

4. Use the Right Model for the Job

With SheetAI, you have access to multiple models. Experiment to find which one works best for your specific task. Claude tends to excel at nuanced analysis, GPT-4o at creative tasks, and Gemini Flash at speed.

5. Cache Your Results

AI calls cost money (whether through API fees or subscription costs). Once you are happy with the output, paste the values (Ctrl+Shift+V in Google Sheets) so formulas do not re-run.

What the Future Looks Like

AI in spreadsheets is still early. Both Microsoft and Google are investing heavily, and the capabilities will grow. But right now, the landscape is clear:

• Excel Copilot is best for conversational data exploration and formula generation
• Google Sheets with SheetAI is best for batch text processing, classification, extraction, and multi-model AI workflows

The cell-function approach that SheetAI uses is fundamentally more powerful for data processing tasks. Being able to apply AI to every row like any other formula changes what is possible in a spreadsheet.

Start Using AI in Your Spreadsheets Today

If you work in Google Sheets and want to start using AI for classification, content generation, data extraction, or any text processing task, install SheetAI and try it out. With support for GPT-4o, Claude, Gemini, and Grok — and the ability to bring your own API key — you get maximum flexibility at minimal cost.

Your spreadsheet just got a lot smarter.