Microsoft brings Python to Excel to offer users new analytical capabilities

Microsoft brings Python to Excel to offer users new analytical capabilities

Microsoft

Public preview makes tools such as visualisations, machine learning and predictive analytics accessible within Microsoft Excel 

Alice Chambers |


Microsoft has integrated programming language Python into Excel to provide users with access to advanced data analysis and visualisation capabilities. 

Available in public preview to those in the Microsoft 365 Insiders programme and using Beta Channel on Windows, Python in Excel provides access to tools for visualisations, cleaning data, machine learning and predictive analytics. It leverages Anaconda Distribution for Python running in Microsoft Azure and includes the most popular Python libraries, such as pandas, Matplotlib and scikit-learn. 

The Python calculations can be accessed directly within an Excel cell so that results can be displayed on worksheets through plots and visualisations. To access the analytics, users can input the new ‘PY’ function directly into cells.  

Screenshot of Python in Excel

Excel users can aggregate and visualise data with Python in Excel (credit: Microsoft)

Teams can also collaborate on Python in Excel by sharing workbooks via Microsoft Teams and Microsoft Outlook, as well as by adding comments and mentions. 

Collaboration tools in Python in Excel

Teams can add comments to workbooks for better collaboration

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