Explore the possibilities offered by the Claude plugin in Excel. Click on an example prompt to copy it and paste it directly into the Claude panel.
🧮
Formulas & Calculations
5 cases
🔍
Generate an advanced lookup formula
Create XLOOKUP, INDEX/MATCH or VLOOKUP formulas adapted to your data structure, without knowing the exact syntax.
Create a formula to look up the value in column D corresponding to the value in A2, in the range A:D of the "Reference" sheet. Use XLOOKUP if available, otherwise INDEX/MATCH.
🟢 Beginner
🐛
Debug a formula with an error
Identify the cause of an error (#N/A, #VALUE!, #REF!) and get a corrected formula with a clear explanation.
This formula returns #N/A: =VLOOKUP(A2,Sheet2!B:D,2,0). Explain why and suggest a corrected version.
🟢 Beginner
🧩
Build complex nested formulas
Create formulas combining multiple functions (IF, AND, OR, SUMIFS...) for complex business rules.
Create a formula that calculates a bonus: if the value in B2 is greater than 100 AND C2 is "Approved", then 15% of B2; otherwise if B2 > 50 then 5% of B2, otherwise 0.
🟡 Intermediate
📐
Explain an existing complex formula
Have a legacy or complex formula that you don't fully understand translated into plain language.
Explain this formula in plain English, step by step: =SUMIFS(D:D,A:A,"Paris",B:B,">="&DATE(2024,1,1),C:C,"Active")
🟢 Beginner
⚡
Optimize slow formulas
Replace volatile or inefficient formulas (INDIRECT, classic array formulas) with higher-performance equivalents.
This workbook is slow with VLOOKUPs across 50,000 rows. Suggest a faster alternative and explain how to implement it.
🟣 Advanced
📊
Data & Analysis
5 cases
🧹
Clean and normalize data
Standardize inconsistent formats (dates, names, categories), remove extra spaces and fix outliers.
Column A contains city names with inconsistent casing (PARIS, paris, Paris). Suggest a formula to normalize everything to "Title Case" and add a cleaned column.
🟢 Beginner
🔎
Analyze a table and extract insights
Ask Claude to read your data and produce a structured summary: trends, notable values, anomalies.
Analyze the table on the "Sales 2024" sheet and tell me: the top 3 performances, the bottom 3, the overall trend and any notable anomalies.
🟢 Beginner
⚠️
Detect duplicates and inconsistencies
Automatically identify duplicates, missing values and logical inconsistencies in your datasets.
Analyze the ID column (column A) and identify all duplicates. For each duplicate, indicate the row numbers involved. Then suggest a formula to flag them automatically.
🟡 Intermediate
🔄
Transform and restructure data
Convert a wide-format table to long format (or vice versa), unpivot data, concatenate or split columns.
My table has one row per customer with 12 columns of monthly figures (Jan to Dec). I want to transform it into a format with 3 columns: Customer, Month, Value. Suggest the simplest method for Excel 365.
🟡 Intermediate
📈
Statistical calculations and interpretation
Calculate statistical indicators (mean, median, standard deviation, percentiles) and get a plain-language interpretation.
Calculate the mean, median, standard deviation and 25th/75th percentiles of the values in column B (B2:B500). Then tell me in 3 sentences what these figures indicate about the distribution.
Write a VBA macro that: loops through all rows in the "Data" sheet, copies rows where column C equals "To process" into a new sheet named "In progress", then deletes those rows from the original sheet.
🟡 Intermediate
🎨
Automate conditional formatting
Generate complex conditional formatting rules or ask Claude to apply them directly via VBA.
Add conditional formatting to the range B2:B100: red background if the value is below 0, orange background if between 0 and 50, green background if above 50.
🟢 Beginner
📋
Create drop-down lists and validations
Set up data validations (drop-down lists, numeric constraints, formats) to secure data entry.
Add a drop-down list in column D with the values: "In progress", "Approved", "Rejected", "Pending". Also add an error message if the user tries to enter something else.
🟢 Beginner
📄
Document a complex Excel file
Automatically generate documentation for the sheets, key formulas and business logic of a complex workbook.
Document this workbook: list all sheets, their apparent purpose, the most complex formulas you identify, and the dependencies between sheets. Format the response as a reference guide.
🟡 Intermediate
🔗
Debug an existing VBA macro
Identify errors in VBA code, understand what it does and get a corrected and commented version.
This VBA macro crashes at line 12 with "Error 1004". Explain why and suggest a corrected version: [paste the VBA code here]
🟣 Advanced
📑
Reports & Visuals
5 cases
📊
Create a summary dashboard
Structure a dashboard tab with key KPIs, associated formulas and formatting recommendations.
Create a "Dashboard" tab in this workbook with: total revenue, gross margin, number of orders and average order value — calculated from the "Data" sheet. Also suggest the recommended formatting structure.
🟡 Intermediate
📉
Recommend the right chart type
Describe your data and get a well-argued recommendation on the chart type best suited to your message.
I have monthly sales data across 3 regions over 2 years. I want to show both the trend over time AND the comparison between regions. What chart type do you recommend and why?
🟢 Beginner
🗂️
Generate a written summary report
Transform raw data into a written summary ready to paste into an email or a reporting document.
Based on the data in the "Q3 Results" sheet, write a 5-line summary in English for an executive report: overall performance, one positive point and one area of concern. Be factual and concise.
🟢 Beginner
🔢
Structure a pivot table
Get step-by-step instructions to create the optimal pivot table for your analysis question.
I want to analyze sales by region and product category, with revenue and volume as values. How should I configure the pivot table on my data (columns: Date, Region, Category, Product, Revenue, Volume)?
🟡 Intermediate
🔮
Create forecasts and projections
Build simple projection models (linear trend, seasonality) with the appropriate Excel formulas.
I have 18 months of monthly sales data in column B. Create a projection for the next 6 months using a linear trend and indicate the confidence interval. Use native Excel functions.