Excel files are mostly created and opened using Microsoft Excel. However, sometimes you may need to open Excel files without Excel. Maybe someone sent you an XLS or XLSX file that you need to read, and you don’t have the Microsoft Office suite. Don’t worry, as there are many ways to get around this.
1. Excelweez Viewer
Excelweez Viewer is an online based tool that allows users to view Excel files on the browser. It’s a secure platform which utilizes the browser’s Engine and features to display the Excel file. This means your file is not uploaded to the servers but instead to the browser kernel.
To use this tool, open the Excel viewer page, click choose file and browse it in your system. Finally, click View Excel file. Your file will be displayed instantly, regardless of its size. You can use the mouse to scroll down or the keyboard navigation keys.
Apart from Excel viewer, Excelweez offers other useful tools such as CSV viewer, JSON to Excel, Excel to JSON, CSV to JSON and JSON to CSV converters.
2. Google Sheets
Google Sheets is an online based spreadsheet Software developed by Google. You can use it to view XLS, XLSX, and CSV files without installing any software. All you need is to be logged in to your GMAIL account. It offers features such as real-time collaboration in the spreadsheet, cell history, file history Formulas and functions. Apart from viewing, you can also use this software to Edit Excel file.
Just like the Excel software that uses Excel, Google Sheets has its own version known as app script. You can write code on it to interact with your spreadsheet. Here are the steps to open an Excel file using Google Sheets on a pc.
1. Open Google Drive on your web browser
2. Upload your Excel file by clicking on New >File upload
3. Once the upload is complete, click on the file to open in Google Sheets automatically. You can now view your file and edit as you wish without Excel.
For mobile phones, tablets and iPads, you just need to download the Google Sheets app in the Play Store or the Appstore. Once you click on an Excel file, it will as you to choose an app and select Google Sheets. Now you can view your Excel file without Excel.
3. Office Chrome Extension
Chrome extensions act like apps for the browser. You can create, view, and Edit Excel documents on the browser without the need to install Excel. All you need to do first is to install the Chrome Extension.
Follow these steps.
Open the Chrome web store page for Microsoft 365
2. Click on Add to Chrome
Confirm the prompt to add an extension
3. Click on the Extensions icon and select Microsoft 365
You can also pin it for easy access next time. When you pin the extension, it will always show on the extension bar next to your Chrome profile.
4. During the use, you need to sign in to your Microsoft account
5. Now click on the Excel Icon from the list of apps
6. Click upload and browse your Excel file
7. You can now choose viewing or Editing Mode
Now you can view or Edit your Excel file without the need to install any software on your PC. The best thing about this option is that your files will be backed up in the browser.
4. Mobile app
If you are on a mobile device, a tablet or an iPad, then you can use the Excel Mobile app or Google Sheets app to view Excel files. Download and install the app from the Appstore or Play Store. Once you click on any Excel file, you will be prompted to choose an app to open your file. Choose Google Sheets or Excel mobile app. You can also set either of the app’s defaults to always open that type of file.
5. Use LibreOffice Calc
Excel for Mac or Windows can be expensive to acquire. If you are on a budget, you can use an open-source spreadsheet software known as LibreOffice Calc. LibreOffice is an opensource based office software.
It features a writer to process Word documents, calc to create, view and edit spreadsheets, Impress for presentations, draw for diagrams and base for the database.
As a successor to OpenOffice, LibreOffice offers more functionalities and compatibility with other software. To view Excel files using libre office, you need to download and install it.
6. Apache OpenOffice
Apache OpenOffice is also an open-source office software. This means you can download and install it on your computer for free. Therefore, to view your Excel file with this software, you need to install it first. Then click on the Excel file and choose Open with open office. You can also open other documents such as Word and Presentation.
7. WPS Office- View and Edit Excel without Excel
WPS is a Free Office Software developed by Kingsoft. As the name depicts, it’s made up of 3 major software, which are Writer, Presentation and Spreadsheet. That means you can edit, view, or create Word, Presentation and Excel files using WPS. Here are the steps to view and Edit Excel using WPS.
WPS features
Conversion: You can convert between PDF and Excel files using wps.
Multiple formats: WPS Spreadsheet is compatible with CSV, XLSX, XLSM, XLT AND XLS.
Free Templates: This software contains a huge library of templates such as calendars, budgets, project planning and charts
How to Open Excel with WPS
1. Download and install WPS on your computer
2. Click on the Excel file you wish to view in your File manager
3. Select open with WPS
You can now view and edit your Excel file as you wish. WPS also comes with a mobile application for Android, iOS and HarmonyOS
8. Aspose Excel Viewer
Aspose is a cloud-based file-processing platform. It allows users to edit, create, view, merge, unlock, sign, split and insert watermarks on various file formats. You can view Excel files without Excel software by using Aspose Excel viewer. All you need to do is to upload the file or type the URL. This software also features an Excel editor that you can use to make changes to your workbook. Aspose supports formats such as ODS, MHTML, XLS, XLSX, TSV, CSV, XLSM, XLSB, HTM and HTML.