Excel University Blog
Read on for in-depth articles, tutorials, and videos. Search or browse for specific topics. Be sure to subscribe if you'd like to be notified when we write something new.
Excel
Did you know Excel can fetch a brand-new Sudoku puzzle with a click of the refresh button? In this tutorial, we’re diving into how to tap into an online Sudoku API and use Power Query to turn that data into a styled and playable puzzle and solution right inside Excel. Even if you’re not much…
Read More
We’re always on the lookout for ways to automate repetitive tasks in Excel. And today, we’re diving into something a bit more fun: building Sudoku puzzles in Excel with the COPILOT and WEBSERVICE functions. Whether you’re a puzzle enthusiast or just looking to expand your Excel skills using its latest AI tools, this practical walkthrough…
Read More
Microsoft Excel’s new COPILOT function brings the power of large language models (LLMs) directly into the worksheet. Unlike the Copilot chat pane, the COPILOT function allows us to perform natural language tasks right in the grid, just like any native Excel function. In this post, we’ll walk through how to use the COPILOT function to…
Read More
Did you know we can auto-generate Sudoku puzzles right inside Excel, without manually entering grid layouts? With the WEBSERVICE function and a little help from a Sudoku API, we can create both a playable Sudoku puzzle and its corresponding solution dynamically. In this step-by-step guide, we’ll show how to make a Sudoku board using Excel’s…
Read More
When it comes to understanding the true cost of borrowing, we can’t afford to rely solely on advertised rates. Terms like APR (Annual Percentage Rate) and APY (Annual Percentage Yield) might seem interchangeable, but they tell very different stories due to compounding. With Excel’s built-in financial functions like NOMINAL, EFFECT, PMT, and RATE, we can…
Read More
Understanding how loan payments are structured can feel overwhelming but Excel gives us powerful tools to make these calculations quick and simple. Whether we’re evaluating monthly payments, interest breakdowns, or savings from early payoff, Excel’s financial functions (PMT, IPMT, PPMT, CUMPRINC, CUMIPMT) help us every step of the way. This post is brought to you…
Read More
Mastering 5 Key Financial Functions: PMT, PV, FV, NPER, RATE Whether we’re planning to buy a car, save for retirement, or pay off a loan, numbers play a central role in our financial journey. Excel gives us powerful tools to analyze and plan financial scenarios. In this post, we’ll walk through five key Excel financial…
Read More
When it comes to evaluating investments in Excel, most people immediately jump to the familiar NPV and IRR functions. While these are incredibly powerful, they can lead to incorrect conclusions if we don’t fully understand how they work, especially when cash flows vary or are irregular. In this post, we’ll walk through six powerful finance…
Read More
I’m thrilled to introduce this year’s Excel University Scholarship recipients! These awards are made possible by the generous support of the Excel University Alumni Association. Thank you to everyone who has contributed to make this program a reality for the past 10 years. This was a very competitive scholarship year with many applicants! Thanks to…
Read More
Microsoft has just introduced one of the most impactful updates to PivotTables in recent memory: Auto Refresh. If you’ve ever relied heavily on PivotTables for financial reports, dashboards, or data summaries, this new feature is a game changer. In this guide, we’ll walk step-by-step through how to enable and use PivotTable auto refresh in Excel,…
Read More