# I need to learn Excel, I think. Any course rec's? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 24, 2025, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746 "2025-02-24T20:45:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![saje](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saje/32/3631_2.png) [@saje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saje)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/1 "2025-02-24T20:45:32Z")
I never quite know where to put questions like these, hope this is ok … The company I work for looooooooves an excel sheet, and I’m pretty hopeless with them. I can do some simple things like sum a column of figures, but not much else. If I’m working in one someone else built and I accidentally screw up a cell formatting I have zero idea how to fix it. I see there are all sorts of online courses out there from free to $$$ - has anyone taken such a course or have anything to recommend? Or any to stay away from either, that’s just a valuable. I see Microsoft offers a tutorial course of sorts. I’m tempted to start there but I know from some of their troubleshooting stuff they sometimes assume a lot more knowledge or background, which gets me nowhere fast. I really want an Excel For Dummies sort of thing, I think. Any ideas? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/2 "2025-02-24T21:34:35Z")
YouTube is full of “Excel for Beginners” videos. I’d find one you like the look of and start there. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/3 "2025-02-24T21:38:07Z")
I would start with the stuff on the Microsoft site, some of which is aimed at rank beginners. Though _some_ of the instruction wherever you find it is going to be specific to particular versions of Excel. And I think it helps to first think about what exactly you want to better understand and concentrate on that. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/4 "2025-02-24T21:48:59Z")
Depending on how you learn best, for something like this I would personally prefer a book rather than a course. In the past I’ve picked up some really excellent technical manuals on subjects like Visual Basic, but offhand I don’t remember the publisher. I just skimmed Amazon and don’t see any publisher that I recognize, but there are definitely Excel books for beginners. If you have easy access to a brick & mortar bookstore you might be well served by skimming through some actual physical books and see what seems most useful for what you need. ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/5 "2025-02-24T21:59:09Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > YouTube is full of “Excel for Beginners” videos. I’d find one you like the look of and start there. Good start. In hardcopy, the Excel for Dummies is better and way less condescending than it sounds. You can work through virtually everything with YouTube once you know the vocabulary to search for what you actually want. Once you get your feet comfortably under the desk then sign up for something like [Exceljet](https://exceljet.net/) who provide a free weekly email of Excel functions. Work through these for a couple of months and fellow staff will think you are an expert. I seem to recall a survey on Excel users that found the average user was only familiar with 5 functions. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/6 "2025-02-24T22:07:09Z")
It seems the OP has the barest basics down. Columns, rows, summing a column and a few other things maybe. I’d say the best way to learn is by doing. Try to make your own spreadsheet for some task you have (can be personal finances…whatever). Yeah, mistakes will be made but you can Google for solutions to each new task you want to achieve. The basics would be properly formatting equations (things like order of operations matter). Understanding how to format an equation so the cell does not increment on the next cell (e.g.$A$1). Some common functions (there are a LOT of them but a few are frequently used). Learning how to link the results from one cell to another and/or use another sheet to do some calculations and link to a main sheet with the results. From there you can move to pivot tables and conditional formatting and other stuff. > [@saje](#): > > If I’m working in one someone else built and I accidentally screw up a cell formatting I have zero idea how to fix it. First, make a copy of the spreadsheet you can work on so the original is always safe and can be referred too. Also, Excel has a nifty tool called [“Evaluate Formula”](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/evaluate-a-nested-formula-one-step-at-a-time-59a201ae-d1dc-4b15-8586-a70aa409b8a7) that helps you step through a formula one step at a time so you can more easily find a problem. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/7 "2025-02-24T22:21:40Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Yeah, mistakes will be made but you can Google for solutions to each new task you want to achieve. Better yet, AI (ChatGPT, etc.). They’ll give you direct answers for any question you ask with an explanation for why, and no extraneous cruft. Keep a browser window open beside the Excel window, and as you run into questions about how to do something, just ask. If you need more detail or background on anything, you can just ask for that too. ---
**Author:** ![Chisquirrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6bbea6/32.png) [@Chisquirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chisquirrel)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/8 "2025-02-24T22:31:28Z")
Excel itself has a number of tutorials built in, as well. They explain the basics, formulae, and pivot tables, which is 95% of why most people need excel. There’s another one for using python, but that’s moving into intermediate territory. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/9 "2025-02-24T22:33:13Z")
> [@penultima\_thule](#): > > You can work through virtually everything with YouTube once you know the vocabulary to search for what you actually want. I think this is the best skill to learn. Being able to tell a search engine (whether Google or YouTube or AI) what you need and get a helpful result is most useful. Of course, you do need the basics down to start to get a handle on how to ask for what you need but it comes with a little practice. Excel has been around since almost forever in PC computing terms. That means there is no shortage of free help to be found with a little searching. If anything, the problem is sorting through the mountain of info to find the bit you really need. In a pinch, you can ask on this forum or other places for help. It is remarkable how willing people are to help out with Excel problems. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/10 "2025-02-24T22:39:42Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > I think this is the best skill to learn. Being able to tell a search engine (whether Google or YouTube or AI) what you need and get a helpful result is most useful. The advantage to AI is that even if you have only a vague idea of what you want, it can usually figure things out if you just describe it. Google and classic search engines have the problem that sometimes you can’t find a thing unless you already know what it is. Fine if you’re looking up the syntax for a function you already know about, but less useful if you don’t know about the function at all. There are of course lots of tutorials out there. In general, they aren’t a good fit for my own learning style, but people differ. ---
**Author:** ![TheTyrant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thetyrant/32/19111_2.png) [@TheTyrant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheTyrant)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/11 "2025-02-24T22:44:28Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Try to make your own spreadsheet for some task you have (can be personal finances…whatever). Yeah, I’m in integration and although the bulk of my work is EE-related I _do_ have to demean myself by writing some actual code every now and then. (I’m just kidding, software developers–put the pitchforks away.) In my experience the best way to learn _anything_ is to have an actual application in mind and just focus on what you need to work toward that. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/12 "2025-02-24T22:45:30Z")
In the past, I’ve found LinkedIn Learning (formerly [Lynda.com](http://Lynda.com)) to be a really good resource, with much higher quality videos than YouTube and very much worth paying for. Some employers or public libraries will also provide free access. They have a bunch of Excel courses too, from the basic to the advanced: > **[Microsoft Excel Online Training Courses | LinkedIn Learning, formerly Lynda.com](https://www.linkedin.com/learning/topics/microsoft-excel?upsellOrderOrigin=default_guest_learning)** > > Our Microsoft Excel online training courses from LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com) provide you with the skills you need, from the fundamentals to advanced tips. Browse our wide selection of Microsoft Excel classes to find exactly what you’re... Although I haven’t gone through their Excel courses in particular, I did learn many other computer skills from them that led into full-time jobs. Edit: I see they’ve updated their pricing to be invisible and require an account first, ugh. Although the videos still seem high-quality (you can view some samples without logging in), they don’t even tell you how much it costs anymore without an account and free trial first. What a shitty dark pattern. Other sites says it costs $40/mo. * * * But yes, ChatGPT is also great for this sort of thing. And the Dope, of course. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2025, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/13 "2025-02-25T03:50:58Z")
I actually use Copilot for Microsoft related questions because it’s a Microsoft tool. I use the Edge browser so it’s right there, a sort of rainbowy button on the top right corner of the browser. For me, just asking Copilot is the way to go. Formerly, Googling. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2025, 9:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/14 "2025-02-25T09:23:38Z")
I think that something like ChatGPT is the best answer now. The trick is to clearly describe what data you have and what you would like your result to look like. I don’t accept any coding solutions if I don’t understand exactly what the code is doing, even if the results look fine. Try sticking something like this in ChatGPT and marvel at the quality of the instruction that it gives you. I have a sheet of data in Excel that has purchase date, purchase price, buyer and part number. I would like to generate a report that lists by month, purchaser, number of purchases, total value and calculates a 5% discount where the monthly total for the purchaser is over $1000. How would I do this? ---
**Author:** ![saje](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saje/32/3631_2.png) [@saje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saje)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2025, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/15 "2025-02-25T10:41:37Z")
Supremely helpful as always, thank you! This might make me face my aversion to all things AI, too – though actually I know I’m a hypocrite since I use Siri and search engines. I don’t know why ChatGPT etc gives me the heebies, but it does. In my job I don’t often need to create anything in Excel, it’s more about using data that someone else has put together, or downloading a report as an Excel sheet and then manipulating that. Part of my problem too is I don’t know the language, and it’s hard to ask for or take direction when I don’t know what I’m talking about. I like the book idea - I’m usually better with printed instructions that don’t irritate me with mannerisms and stealth ads. Thanks all, you’re the best! ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2025, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/16 "2025-02-25T13:57:38Z")
> [@saje](#): > > I don’t know why ChatGPT etc gives me the heebies, but it does. Just think of it like a fancy autocomplete that happened to take billions of dollars, all the world’s copyrighted information, and a few gazillawatthours to train. I mean, it’s probably going to take our jobs, enslave our kids, and [eat our cats](https://chatgpt.com/share/67bdcdf3-f3e8-8011-95c9-f5c0fcabbd1e), but that’s at least a few months away. In the meantime, it’s way way better than Google or Siri at answering complex technical questions. Like way way way better. You don’t really need to know any special lingo besides “row”, “column” and “cell”. You can describe anything in plain English, and copy and paste the actual cell formulas when you need to. It’ll figure it out, often better than humans could. It’s not good at everything (thankfully) but it is pretty good at explaining and/or producing code. It’s a patient teacher that’s already read the books you want to buy and can use them to explain any question you might have. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.winston_oboogie/32/2945_2.png) [@Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Winston_OBoogie)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2025, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/17 "2025-02-25T14:19:47Z")
How big is the company you work for? Your IT department (or HR) may have “classes” that they have purchased that you can use free of charge. Try a “beginners” course, but you may be disappointed in just how “beginner” they’re talking about. ---
**Author:** ![Eric1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3bc359/32.png) [@Eric1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eric1)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2025, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/18 "2025-02-25T14:45:50Z")
This is a neat thread. I don’t use Excel at my job but do love using it in other group settings, presentations and such. I had some fabulous experiences using it a university and it is fascinating to learn applications for the formulas. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2025, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/19 "2025-02-25T15:57:58Z")
I have a co-worker who frequently uses ChatGPT to generate formulas for Excel sheets (actually Google Sheets, but really no difference) he builds for various teams. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2025, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746/20 "2025-02-25T16:32:03Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > (actually Google Sheets, but really no difference) Yes and no. Excel is light years more capable but, for most uses, Google Sheets is more than sufficient. I’ve gotten Google Sheets to do some cool stuff. My employer was thrilled. Made our accounting department super happy. Still, Excel is far more powerful but most people never go there. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-to-learn-excel-i-think-any-course-recs/1014746.md?page=2)