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SPREADSHEETS & DATABASES · MIGRATION GUIDE

Switching from Airtable to Microsoft Excel

Airtable exports each view as CSV, which Excel opens. The data moves; linked records, automations, forms and interfaces stay behind.

Jump to migration steps Read the full comparison
By Bill Belcamino · Last updated September 24, 2026 · Our methodologyResearched and fact-checked by the HelpCompare team
Switching from Airtable to Microsoft ExcelVerified Sep 24, 2026

Quick verdict: Move to Excel when you mainly analyse or report on the data, when you have outgrown Airtable’s record caps, or when your team already pays for Microsoft 365 and the Airtable bill is hard to justify.

Estimate · your inputs

Switching Cost & Friction Estimator

Most buyers only budget for the new subscription. This estimates the hidden labor, data-cleanup, and retraining cost of actually making the switch.

25,000
10

Estimate assumes: 1 hour of data-mapping/cleaning labor per 2,000 records, a blended $75/hr ops rate, tiered migration & cleaning tooling fees, and 4 hours of retraining per seat at a $45/hr fully-loaded rate.

Estimated Migration Time —
Data Friction Rating —
Total Hidden Switching Cost $0

    Why teams move from Airtable to Microsoft Excel

    Lower cost

    Excel for the web is free; Microsoft 365 Business Basic is $7/user/mo (annual) against $20/seat for Airtable Team.

    Bigger sheets

    A worksheet holds 1,048,576 rows against 50,000 records per base on Airtable Team.

    Analysis tools

    Pivot tables, charts and formulas across the whole grid.

    How the migration actually works

    Airtable exports one view at a time: open the view menu and choose Download CSV. Excel opens the CSV directly.

    Export every view you need, including the ones that filter or sort data your team relies on.

    StepWhat you do
    1List what you haveNote each table, its linked records, automations, forms and interfaces; only table data will move.
    2Export each table as CSVOpen a grid view showing all fields and records, then choose Download CSV from the view menu.
    3Open the CSVs in ExcelPut each table on its own sheet in one workbook, or keep separate workbooks per table.
    4Rebuild relationshipsLinked records export as text; use lookup formulas to connect sheets again.
    5Replace forms and automationsMicrosoft 365 Business Basic includes Microsoft Forms for surveys and polls; decide which Airtable automations you rebuild elsewhere and which become manual steps.
    6Share the workbookStore it in OneDrive or SharePoint so the team edits one copy.
    7Cancel AirtableOnce the team works from the workbook, downgrade or cancel the Airtable plan.

    What this path doesn’t do for you:

    Linked records, formula fields, forms, automations, interfaces and comments do not export as working features. A CSV carries values only, one view at a time.

    Pricing side by side

    PlanAirtableMicrosoft Excel
    Free planUp to 5 editors, 1,000 records/baseExcel for the web, free Microsoft account
    Entry paid planTeam $20/seat/mo (annual), $24 monthlyMicrosoft 365 Business Basic $7/user/mo (annual), $8.40 monthly
    Next tierBusiness $45/seat/mo (annual)Apps for business $10; Business Standard $14 (annual)
    Who is billedCommenter+ (Team), Editor+ (Business)Every licensed user
    Data limit50,000 records/base on Team1,048,576 rows per worksheet

    Prices checked on each vendor’s own pricing page on September 24, 2026.

    Feature parity check

    CapabilityAirtableMicrosoft Excel
    RelationshipsLinked recordsLookups by hand
    FormsBuilt inMicrosoft Forms (separate app in Microsoft 365)
    Automations25,000 runs/month on TeamNo run allowance listed on the pages we checked
    Row limit50,000 records per base on Team1,048,576 per sheet
    Price$20/seat/mo (annual)$7/user/mo Business Basic (annual)

    Going the other direction, or want the full comparison first?

    Read the Airtable vs Microsoft Excel comparison Switching from Microsoft Excel to Airtable instead?
    Verified data

    Security & access: what changes when you switch

    Security, offline and access rules that differ between Airtable and Microsoft Excel. Rows where both tools are the same (5) are left out; the full side-by-side is on each tool’s page: Airtable, Microsoft Excel.

    What changesAirtable (today)Microsoft Excel (after)
    Other certificationsISO/IEC 27701sourceISO/IEC 27017, ISO/IEC 27018source
    HIPAA (BAA)BAA availableEnterprise ScalesourceBAA availablesource
    Single sign-on (SAML/OIDC)YesBusinesssourceYessource
    SCIM user provisioningYesBusinesssourceNot published
    Two-factor authenticationYesEnforcement: BusinesssourceYessource
    Admin audit logYesEnterprise ScalesourceYessource
    Data residency choicesUS, EUsourceAustralia, AT, Brazil, Canada, CL, DK, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Israel, IT, Japan, MY, MX, NZ, NO, PL, QA, South Africa, South Korea, ES, SE, Switzerland, TW, UAE, UKAdvanced Data Residency (add-on)source
    Encryption256-bit AES at rest; 256-bit SSL/TLS in transit; customer-owned keys on EnterprisesourceBitLocker disk encryption plus per-file AES-256 encryption at rest (OneDrive/SharePoint); SSL/TLS in transitsource
    Offline modeNeeds a connectionAirtable says offline access is not supported in any app; the web, desktop and mobile apps all require internet access, and data can only be exported for offline reference.sourceWorks offlineThe Excel mobile/tablet apps can create new workbooks and edit files offline (cloud files must have been opened online once), and pending changes sync when you reconnect.source
    Offline limits—Files on OneDrive, SharePoint or other cloud storage must have been opened online at least once before they can be worked on offline.source
    IP allowlistingYesEnterprise ScalesourceYesMicrosoft 365 Business Premium (or Entra ID P1)source
    Device & session controlsYesBusinessAdmin-set web session length (4 hours to 1 year) on Business and Enterprise Scale; Enterprise Scale can also restrict printing, CSV downloads and copying to clipboard from apps (desktop only).sourceYesMicrosoft 365 Business Premium (or Entra ID P1)Entra Conditional Access can require MFA, compliant or hybrid-joined devices, approved client apps or app protection policies; SharePoint/OneDrive can block unmanaged devices or limit them to browser-only access with no download, print or sync.source
    Editorial assessment

    Before you cut over

    • Set up single sign-on in Microsoft Excel before you invite the team, so accounts are created through your identity provider rather than by hand.
    • Microsoft Excel adds offline access (full): install the desktop or mobile app for staff who work on the move.

    Checked September 24, 2026 against each vendor’s own trust center, help docs and app pages. Hover or tap “source” to see the exact wording we relied on. “Not published” means we could not find the vendor saying it on its own site; it doesn’t mean the feature is missing. Plan names are the lowest plan the vendor says includes the feature. Security · Offline · Remote vs office · Download the data

    Frequently Asked Questions

    How do I export data from Airtable?

    Per view: open the view menu and choose Download CSV. Convert it to XLSX in Excel if you need to.

    Do linked records survive the export?

    They come across as text values in the CSV; rebuild the relationships with lookup formulas in Excel.

    Will Excel be cheaper?

    Yes for most teams. Excel for the web is free and Microsoft 365 Business Basic is $7/user/mo annual, against $20/seat/mo for Airtable Team.

    Canonical data for the tools on this page

    Every pricing fact, rating, AI billing model and switching guide we hold on each tool, on one page, with the date each figure was last verified.

    AirtablePricing, free plan, AI cost & every comparison›Microsoft ExcelPricing, free plan, AI cost & every comparison›
    Airtable vs ExcelHead-to-head comparison
    Microsoft Excel to AirtableSwitching guideBox to Google WorkspaceSwitching guideDropbox Business to Google WorkspaceSwitching guideGoogle Workspace to BoxSwitching guideGoogle Workspace to Dropbox BusinessSwitching guideGoogle Workspace to Microsoft 365Switching guide

    Sources

    Prices on this page were recorded from each vendor’s own pricing page on the date shown at the top of the page. Vendors change pricing often — check the live source before you buy.

    Every figure is also in our open dataset (JSON and CSV, CC BY 4.0), with its source page and verification date. See how we research pricing.

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    01 · CompareWhich tool fits your team, side by side.116 comparisons 02 · Price & approveSourced, dated pricing and a one-page brief for sign-off.Decision brief 03 · SwitchWhat moves, what you rebuild, what it costs.232 guides 04 · ShareDownload and cite the data. CC BY 4.0.Open data
    Bill Belcamino, founder of HelpCompare
    About the author

    Bill Belcamino

    Founder and author, HelpCompare

    Engineer by training, operator by experience, marketer by choice. Bill spent nine years as an engineer at HP, was COO of Auctiva (the number one third-party selling platform on eBay, past 200,000 users) and ran Google’s $70M/year search syndication partnership at Alot.com. Then he spent 13 years building his own web properties with his own money at stake. He has bought, trialled, integrated and cancelled more SaaS tools than he can count, and started HelpCompare because the real cost of switching tools is the part nobody covers.

    “I’ve sat on both sides of the table: the agency recommending the tool and the client paying for it.”

    Researched and fact-checked by the HelpCompare team. Pricing on this page was last verified on September 24, 2026. No paid sponsorships, no affiliate commissions.

    Read Bill’s story How we verify pricingSpot an error? Tell Bill