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2026-10-25

ChatGPT in Excel and Google Sheets: what it changes for your teams in 2026

Emma Pariente

Since 5 May 2026, ChatGPT has been generally available in Excel and Google Sheets.
Not in beta. Not for a few selected companies.

For all plans, including the free one!

It is a paradigm shift for teams that live in spreadsheets: management control, HR, marketing, senior management.

The "copy and paste between ChatGPT and Excel" workflow now belongs firmly in the past...

In this article: how it works, what your teams can automate right now, and how to bring your employees on board to achieve real time savings.

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■ Your teams use Excel every day.

Discover how AI Sisters trains them to use AI directly in their business tools — without friction, without jargon.

→ Book a free call

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Why this integration is a real game changer for companies

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Excel remains the most widely used tool in companies, across all functions.
It is where forecast budgets, variance analyses, HR dashboards and management reports are built.

It is also where the most time is lost: hours spent formatting, cleaning badly entered data, recreating analyses that nobody documented, and answering the same questions every month.

Until now, AI sat next to the spreadsheet: you asked ChatGPT for help, copied the result and pasted it into Excel.

Lots of friction, frequent errors, and limited adoption among non-technical employees.

With the ChatGPT add-in, the AI is inside the spreadsheet.

It sees your data, acts on it, explains what it is doing and asks for approval before each change!

It is precisely this architectural shift from "next to" to "inside" that explains why this announcement is far from trivial.

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What ChatGPT can actually do in Excel and Google Sheets

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Create a table from scratch based on a description

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You describe what you want a 12-month forecast budget, a headcount tracker by department, a marketing campaign plan and ChatGPT generates it, formulas included, with formatting!

No template to adapt, no columns to create by hand!

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Analyse your data across several tabs

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The add-in reads your entire workbook, including multiple tabs.
You can ask it questions in natural language: "Where are my biggest variances against budget this quarter?", "Which department has the highest absenteeism rate?", "Which customers have increased their purchase volume by more than 20%?".

It answers in plain language, with no formula to decipher!

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Clean data in a few seconds

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Duplicates, inconsistent formats, empty cells, badly entered dates: ChatGPT identifies the problems and fixes them.

‍This is often where the time saving is most immediate and most impressive for sceptical employees!

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Automate recurring tasks with "Skills"

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The add-in lets you set up reusable workflows called Skills for tasks that come round every week or every month: standard formatting, financial reconciliation, scenario analysis.

Set it up once, rerun it in one click!

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Bring in web data without switching tabs

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ChatGPT can search the web from the side panel and insert the data directly into your sheet.

Exchange rates, sector data, competitive information: the spreadsheet becomes a real-time information terminal!

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■ Is your Finance team still spending 3 hours on its reports?

AI Sisters trains your employees to automate their recurring Excel tasks with AI — from the very first sessions.

→ Talk to a training expert

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The roles that will get the most value from it

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Management control and Finance

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Variance analyses, forecast budgets, reconciliations, scenario building: everything that is still done manually in Excel, often under deadline pressure.

‍This is the use case with the most direct and most measurable ROI.

The add-in can also connect to other applications linked to the OpenAI account, Stripe, SharePoint and others to enrich sheets with external data without manual imports.

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Human Resources

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Headcount trackers, payroll analyses, monthly HR reporting, training tracking, absenteeism calculations.

Time-consuming tasks that take up hours of low-value work. AI automates them, and the HR director can focus on analysis and decisions!

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Marketing and Communications

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Performance dashboards, consolidation of multi-source data, campaign tracking, CAC and LTV calculations.

These teams often depend on one Excel expert who "knows how to do the formulas".
The add-in opens up access to analysis, with no prior technical training.

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Senior management

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The report you receive late because someone spent three hours formatting it.

The executive committee presentation rebuilt from scratch every quarter.
‍These tasks can be cut to a few minutes, with better formatting quality!

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■ Ready to roll out ChatGPT in Excel for your teams?

AI Sisters builds the training programme suited to your context — eligible for OPCO funding (French training funds), Qualiopi-certified.

→ Request a free quote

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How to install ChatGPT in Excel and Google Sheets: a 4-step guide

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Installation takes less than two minutes.

In Excel: Home ribbon → Add-ins → Search for "ChatGPT" → Add → Open from the ribbon → Sign in with your OpenAI account.

In Google Sheets: Extensions menu → Add-ons → Get add-ons → Search for "ChatGPT" → Install → Sign in.

Once installed, a side panel opens to the right of your spreadsheet. ‍

ChatGPT sees the active workbook.
You can start asking it questions or requesting changes straight away.

A few important points to know before rolling it out in your company:

— Conversations in the spreadsheet are kept separate from your usual ChatGPT history. Memory is not available in the add-in.

— In an Enterprise environment, the add-in is disabled by default. Administrators can enable it and restrict access through role-based controls.

— Some advanced Excel features remain out of reach: VBA, Power Query, pivot tables, data validation. The add-in is effective for data analysis and manipulation, but not yet for macro automation.

— For very large workbooks, some datasets may exceed the context window. Analyses need to be split across targeted tabs.

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Training your teams on ChatGPT in Excel: why it is essential

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Rolling out the add-in is not enough. Field experience confirms this unambiguously.

An employee who cannot write a clear instruction in natural language will not get a better result with ChatGPT in Excel than with ChatGPT in a browser.

They may even lose confidence in the tool after two or three unsuccessful attempts.

The real value of this integration is only realised if your teams know:

— How to structure a request (context + objective + expected format)

— How to check the changes proposed by the AI before accepting them

— How to set up Skills for the recurring tasks in their role

— Which limitations to watch so as not to misuse the tool

This is exactly what AI Sisters rolls out in companies: hands-on ChatGPT training, tailored by role, that turns the tool into real time savings, not a gadget nobody uses after the first week.

900+ companies supported. 60,000+ employees trained.

The results in the field show it: trained teams use AI independently.

Untrained teams give up after a few attempts.

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■ AI in Excel is here now. Are your teams ready?

900+ companies trained by AI Sisters. Qualiopi-certified training provider. Measurable results from the first session.

→ Book a call with the team

100%

Compatible plans — free included

2 min

To install the ChatGPT add-in

60,000+

Employees trained by AI Sisters

May 2026

General availability of the add-in

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Also worth reading on this topic:

→ Training your teams on ChatGPT → Measuring the ROI of AI training → Generative AI: use cases for managers

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Frequently asked questions — ChatGPT in Excel and Google Sheets

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Is ChatGPT in Excel available to all companies, including in Enterprise environments?

Yes, but with an important nuance: in Enterprise environments, the add-in is disabled by default. IT administrators must enable it manually and can restrict access by role. For SMEs and mid-sized companies on Free, Plus or Business plans, access is immediate after installation.

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Is the data entered in Excel sent to OpenAI?

Yes: for ChatGPT to analyse your workbook, the data is sent to the OpenAI API. Conversations in the add-in are kept separate from your usual ChatGPT history, and memory is not available there. For sensitive data (salaries, personal data, confidential financial information), make sure your OpenAI plan complies with your internal security policy before rolling it out.

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Do you need to be an Excel expert to use ChatGPT in the spreadsheet?

No — that is precisely the main benefit of the tool. An employee with no Excel expertise can ask in natural language for what they want, and ChatGPT generates the formulas and the structure. However, employees trained to write precise instructions (prompt engineering) get far more value from it than those who use it without a framework.

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What is the difference between ChatGPT in Excel and Claude in Excel?

Claude for Excel (Anthropic) got there first in March 2026. ChatGPT (OpenAI) followed in May. Both work on the same principle: an add-in with a side panel. The main difference lies in the underlying model (GPT-5.5 vs Claude Sonnet), the native integrations available, and how confidentiality is handled in Enterprise environments. The choice often depends on the AI ecosystem already deployed in the company.

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How can I train my teams to use ChatGPT in Excel effectively?

Installation is simple. Adoption is far less automatic. Feedback from the field shows that untrained employees give up on the tool after a few unsuccessful attempts. Training tailored by role — Finance, HR, Marketing — covering how to write instructions, check results and set up Skills leads to lasting adoption. This is what AI Sisters rolls out in companies, with hands-on sessions and measurable results from the first week.

Also worth reading: Claude in Excel: the Claude for Excel guide and excelling at Excel with ChatGPT-4o

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FAQ

Answers to your questions about AI in business.
How to train your teams, identify the right use cases and roll out AI effectively.

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How can I train my teams in AI without it taking months?

It is the question we hear most often. The short answer: with the right method, a single day is enough for your teams to really start changing their habits. At AI Sisters, we have built a three-step approach, tested on more than 350 projects:

Step 1 - Understand, not just "discover"
We start with an AI Show: a live, immersive session with real-time demos on real cases. No generic slides. Your teams leave with a clear view of what AI can (and cannot) do for them.

Step 2 - Practise on real topics
Hands-on workshops are organised by role: HR, Finance, Marketing, Sales, Legal, Ops. We use your real documents, your real emails, your real tools. Prompts are tested live.

Step 3 - Embed new habits at D+30
One month later, we run an impact review: what has been adopted, what is still blocking, what needs adjusting. This follow-up is what makes the difference.

In short: training your teams in AI does not take months. With an approach built on immersion, role-based practice and impact follow-up,

Can AI training really be adapted to my sector (healthcare, finance, industry...)?

Yes, and that is exactly what separates useful training from training people forget.

Before each project, AI Sisters carries out a pre-audit: we analyse your typical documents (contracts, emails, reporting, product sheets), your tools (Office suite, Google, CRM, ERP) and your workflows.
We identify where AI can create value in your specific context. Then we choose, from our 40 business experts, the one who knows your sector best.
An HR team in an industrial group will not see the same examples as a B2C sales team. Prompts, exercises, use cases - everything is adapted.

‍In short: AI Sisters adapts each training programme to the reality of your sector, thanks to a pre-audit and 40 business experts. Healthcare, finance, industry, services: content is built on your real documents and your real constraints, not on generic examples.

Can AI training be funded by my OPCO?

Yes, in most cases.
AI Sisters training is Qualiopi-certified, which makes it eligible for OPCO funding (French training funds). The level of funding depends on your skills operator, the scheme used and your available budget, but in many cases a significant part of the cost can be covered.

In practice, we support you through the whole application: detailed quote, compliant programme, supporting documents, follow-up until reimbursement.

‍In short: thanks to Qualiopi certification, AI Sisters training is OPCO-fundable. The amount varies with your operator and your situation, but it can mean substantial savings.

Is AI training better on-site or remote?

Both work. What matters is the intention behind the format.
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On-site is ideal for a strong kick-off: a seminar day, a moment of collective co-creation, a team starting out together.

Remote is perfect for multi-site or international teams - our online sessions use training assistants via chat to keep things interactive (Q&A, co-writing prompts, live exercises).

Either way, the method stays the same: AI upskilling + practice + follow-up. And every session is led by a business expert, not a generalist trainer.

‍In short: on-site or remote, the format adapts to your organisation. AI Sisters keeps the same level of quality and interactivity in both cases, with business experts dedicated to each session.

Which tasks can I really hand over to AI in my team today?

The best way to answer is by role.

‍HR: screen CVs, generate job descriptions, write emails to candidates, prepare interviews.
‍Finance: explain an Excel table, write a commentary on results, prepare a forecast budget.
‍Marketing / Comms: create an editorial calendar, adapt a message into several formats, A/B test hooks.
‍Sales: write prospecting emails, personalise sequences, prepare responses to tenders.
‍Legal: analyse an NDA, flag risky clauses, generate a first draft to review.
‍Leadership: summarise committee meetings, prepare strategy notes, build impact scenarios.

In our AI workshops, we do not show fictional cases. We take your real documents and test AI on them, live.

Before AI: 2 hours to write meeting minutes.
With AI: 20 minutes.
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Before AI: 3 hours to analyse an Excel file.
With AI: 30 minutes.

‍In short: AI can speed up dozens of practical tasks in every department. AI Sisters helps you identify the ones with the most impact for your team, and test them straight away on your own documents.

My team is not technical. Can they still use AI?

Yes. In fact, that is the whole point.

Our approach is 100% role-based, with no technical jargon. We start from your teams' real problems (lost time, repetitive tasks, heavy reporting) and show how to turn them into simple prompts.

At the end of the workshop, each participant leaves with ready-to-use prompt templates adapted to their job.

The goal is not to train data scientists. It is for every employee to be able to say: "This is how AI helps me in a typical day."

‍In short: You do not need technical skills to use AI every day. AI Sisters turns the tools into accessible, role-based practices, and gives every participant prompts they can use the very next day.

How can I be sure AI does not make mistakes in a sensitive context (legal, medical, financial)?

It is a more than legitimate question, and we address it directly in our training.
We do not just show what AI can do. We also stress what should not be delegated to it, how to review and validate its answers, and how to combine a clear business brief with a well-built prompt to get the best quality.

Our experts know the constraints of your sector: compliance, deadlines, accuracy, GDPR, approved tools.
Nothing is left to improvisation.

‍In short: AI Sisters builds the limits and risks of AI into its training. Your teams learn to use AI reliably, knowing what they can hand over to it and how to check the results.