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Copilot in Excel offers a broad range of features that allow you to analyse data, manipulate spreadsheets, visualise information, and solve complex problems. Until recently, these functionalities have been quite limited. This guide walks you through five distinct approaches including the latest releases: Copilot Chat, App Skills, Agent Mode and =Copilot Function.

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Introduction

The best results will come when you use Copilot as an Excel assistant designed to increase speed and efficiency while you focus on assessing the accuracy and thought process of Copilot. This collaborative relationship will yield increased productivity and efficiency gains for most Excel tasks, freeing you to tackle more complex problems.

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Standard Copilot Chat in Excel

Copilot Chat enables you to interact with your Excel workbook and query its data through a chatbot interface. Consider it a conversation with your spreadsheet where you can ask questions and receive answers.
Copilot Chat Pn
This feature is perfect for when you want to understand your dataset or ask for simple calculations/insights. It works best when your data is formatted as an Excel Table, and your prompts are short and specific. Keep in mind, Copilot Chat can’t make edits or changes to an Excel workbook.

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Best practices

  • Best for simple general queries, not complex data analysis.
  • Cannot edit an Excel workbook directly, so use it to query your data.

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Copilot App Skills

App Skills enables Copilot to move from reading your data to actively making changes. This feature allows Copilot to edit your spreadsheet, create visualisations or run calculations. You can access App Skills by clicking on the down arrow under the Copilot button.
Copilot App Skills Pn
Use App Skills in cases when you need to: Sort and filter data, Apply conditional formatting, Clean the data, Create text descriptions, Create visualisations, Analyse data, Apply formulas/calculations and add new columns or rows. The key here is using App Skills to speed up processes, and automate basic tasks, rather than replacing your entire data analysis process.
App Skills Panel Pn
Once open, the App Skills panel appears on the right side of the screen, looking slightly different to the Copilot Chat box. From here you can select from suggested prompts or type your own.

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Best practices

  • Keep your prompts short and clear
  • Make one request at a time, rather than asking all your questions at once
  • When prompting, it can help to reference exact sheets, columns and rows in your prompts
  • Standard Excel Undo (Ctrl+Z) works if you need to reverse any applied changes

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Excel Agent Mode

Agent Mode is the most powerful application of Copilot inside of Excel. While App Skills handles general data analysis well, it may produce unreliable results on highly complex questions or tasks. This is where Agent Mode can be helpful. Agent Mode is a specialist data analyst tool that is capable of spending several minutes solving complex problems, and correcting mistakes it produces. As shown below, Agent Mode is a leading data analytics tool that’s able to deliver near human grade accuracy in highly complex tasks.
Excel Agent Mode Pn
Agent Mode can sort data, apply formatting, create new sheets, build visualizations, construct functional workbooks, and solve complex problems.
Agent Mode Panel Pn
If you have never previously accessed Agent Mode, you will need to go into “Add-ins,” and add “Excel Labs.” From here, you will be able to access Excel Labs (which contains Agent Mode) and will appear next to the Copilot button.

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Best practices

  • Always work on a copy of the original file to avoid unintended errors.
  • You can Undo (Ctrl+Z) any changes made by Agent Mode.
  • Check key formulas or calculations for accuracy.
  • While Agent Mode is operational and responding to your prompts, avoid making manual changes.

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The =Copilot function

The “=Copilot()” function brings AI into individual Excel cells. The function is best for tasks like summarising lengthy text, generating sample data, and creating short descriptions. This tool should not be used for extensive data analysis, however, can be used to interpret basic insights from a data set.
Copilot Function Pn
You use the function by typing “=Copilot” and following this with your instruction in quotes, and any context you want Copilot to consider.

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Example prompts in practice

=Copilot("Create a table with sample sales data")

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Quick reference

Traditional Copilot Chat

Use for: Simple questions, summaries, general overviews, simple data questions.

Tips:
  • Works best with tables (the Excel table function)
  • Keep your prompts short and specific
  • This can’t edit your Excel workbook

Excel App Skills

Use for: Editing, formatting, visualising, and automating basic tasks. This is for when you want to use Copilot to make changes within your Excel workbook.

Tips:
  • One task per prompt
  • Reference exact cells/sheets
  • Undo with Ctrl+Z

Excel Agent Mode

Use for: Advanced data analysis and workbook builds. This will be Copilot’s most accurate and powerful Excel functionality but is still in early phases currently.

Tips:
  • Use a copy of your file
  • Check results manually
  • Requires Excel Labs Add-in
  • Undo supported (Ctrl+Z)

=Copilot Function

Use for: Cell level AI tasks like summarizing information, creating descriptions, or generating sample data.

Examples:
  • =Copilot(“Create a sample sales table”)
  • =Copilot(“Summarize feedback trends”, C2:C8)

    Tip:
  • Use for light insights, not full analysis