Microsoft Excel is a mobile spreadsheet application for data analysis, financial management, and document editing on iOS and Android.
Product velocity
Active
Daily rank 🇺🇸
#14
▲1Productivity · free
Sentiment
4.8
10.3M reviews
Nemesis
Google Sheets
The App DNA
What makes this app unique?
Users open Microsoft Excel to maintain continuity of their complex financial workbooks when away from desktop environments, relying on the app to bridge the gap between mobile data entry and professional-grade analysis.
For Professionals, students, and personal finance managers requiring cross-platform spreadsheet tools and AI-assisted data analysis.
What does it look like?
Key features
Generates charts and summarizes data via natural language prompts.
Enables multiple users to edit and comment on shared workbooks simultaneously.
Allows users to highlight cells and write equations using touch-capable devices.
How much does it cost?
Subscription-based model anchored at $99.99/year for individuals, with AI features gated behind higher-tier plans.
Velocity
Active developmentperformanceopaqueShow more...
The app maintains an active release cadence of approximately 0.6 releases per week, with consistent updates across iOS and Android. Despite this frequent activity, the release notes are uniformly opaque, consistently citing only general quality and performance enhancements. This pattern suggests the publisher is likely utilizing server-side feature flags or A/B testing to manage updates rather than traditional App Store feature deployments. The development trend remains stable, focusing on maintenance and infrastructure rather than visible feature expansion.
Who built it?
Microsoft
13+ apps tracked · Productivity
Microsoft SharePoint
Microsoft Defender: Security
Microsoft Bing Search
Microsoft Edge
Microsoft OneDrive
Xbox
Link to Windows
Microsoft OneNote
Microsoft Word
Remote Help
Microsoft Edge Dev
Microsoft EventsUser Sentiment
What do users think recently?
The recent review mood reads frustrated. Users appreciate core spreadsheet functionality provides a reliable tool for tracking personal stats and managing daily expenses and the mobile experience mirrors desktop capabilities allowing users to navigate cells and add content efficiently, but report frequent application crashes and long load times prevent users from accessing or editing their documents.
How are ratings & reviews evolving?
Weekly average review rating
What users say, by theme
- Core spreadsheet functionality provides a reliable tool for tracking personal stats and managing daily expenses
- The mobile experience mirrors desktop capabilities allowing users to navigate cells and add content efficiently
- Frequent application crashes and long load times prevent users from accessing or editing their documents
120 of 7807 recent reviews analyzed · high confidence · Frustrated overall
Read the full review analysisUnlock 2 more frustration themes and 1 user request, each backed by review evidence.
Access the full report for freeCompetition
Competitive landscape for Microsoft Excel
How's the Productivity market?
Microsoft Excel maintains a top 25 grossing position in the Productivity category across major markets, though its reliance on a premium subscription model creates friction compared to free, cloud-native alternatives. The app's high grossing rank relative to its recent stability-driven rating decline suggests that enterprise lock-in is currently shielding revenue from user experience churn.
Read the market outlookThe rivals identified
By Google
Dominates the spreadsheet niche with a massive user base and high-velocity release cadence that directly challenges Microsoft's mobile dominance.
- Native real-time collaboration architecture allows multiple users to edit cells simultaneously without sync conflicts
- Deep integration with the broader Google Workspace ecosystem creates high switching costs for enterprise teams
- Web-first design philosophy ensures consistent feature parity across mobile, tablet, and desktop browser environments
Zoho Sheet: Spreadsheet AppContender
Numbers: Make SpreadsheetsContender
Polaris Office - PDF & DocsContenderUnlock the head-to-head verdict: where this rival wins, and where it loses.
Access the full report for freeThe Analyst's Read
Key takeaways for Microsoft Excel
Where is it heading?
The mobile productivity market is consolidating around cloud-native workflows that prioritize speed and collaboration. Microsoft Excel remains advantaged by its deep enterprise lock-in, but the current decline in quality control signals a vulnerability that will allow Google Sheets to capture more of the mobile-first user base over the next two quarters.
- Recent stability regressions and authentication friction are actively eroding trust among long-term subscribers, which will likely accelerate churn into Q3.
- The continued investment in Copilot AI features maintains a competitive edge in advanced data analysis that rivals currently struggle to replicate.
The SWOT
- Microsoft 365 ecosystem integration creates high switching costs
- Advanced formatting tools provide superior power for complex tasks
- Localized pricing could capture underserved segments in emerging markets
Next best moves
Audit authentication flow because repeated login prompts are a top-three complaint theme → reduce session abandonment
+ 1 more prioritized moveThe counter-intuitive read
The app's high grossing rank is a liability…
Read the full takeFeature gaps
Native real-time collaboration engine (available in Google Sheets but less performant here) +1
Since the last report: The emergence of functional regressions in search and filtering tools, alongside persistent stability and authentication complaints, has degraded the user experience. These technical failures now threaten the app's competitive standing against cloud-native alternatives.
Bottom line
Microsoft Excel's market dominance rests on its deep integration with professional workflows, but the current stability regressions threaten to alienate the core user base. Prioritizing functional parity and access reliability will unlock the retention stability needed to defend against cloud-native competitors.
Unlock 2 critical frictions, 1 market threat, 1 more prioritized move and the analyst’s take.
Access the full report for freeFAQ
Is Microsoft Excel free to use on mobile?
How does Microsoft Excel compare to Google Sheets?
Does Microsoft Excel work offline?
What are some free alternatives to Microsoft Excel?
Sources
- [1] Play Store, source
Report last updated