Articles
Short, practical pieces on spreadsheet problems people actually search for — and on changes outside the add-ins that alter what somebody has to do on a Monday morning.
For how to use a particular add-in, the guides are the place; each one runs the whole thing on a worked example.
News
Microsoft is retiring Excel™’s COPILOT() function
The in-cell =COPILOT() function goes on 14 September 2026, about a year after
it appeared and without ever leaving preview. The Copilot™ side pane remains and Microsoft
points you at it — but it needs a paid Microsoft 365™ Copilot™ licence, and it is a
conversation rather than an answer that stays put beside the formula. What actually
changes, and how to get a formula explained without a Copilot™ seat.
Read the article · Selection-Scoped Formula Explainer · The guide it points at
Google Sheets™ help
AI Readiness Scanner and Fixer
- Why Gemini™ in Google Sheets™ gives wrong answers
- Convert to table in Google Sheets™: what it fixes and what it doesn't
- Preparing one spreadsheet for both Copilot™ and Gemini™
Import Cleaner for Xero
- Xero™ export dates wrong in Google Sheets™
- How to import a Xero™ CSV into Google Sheets™ without breaking dates
- Xero™ bank statement import failed: check your sheet first
- Xero™ import created duplicate contacts
- Numbers from Xero™ won't sum in Google Sheets™
Import Cleaner for Sage™
- Sage™ 50 import errors: nominal codes, dates and tax codes
- Sage™ Accounting import errors: contacts and bank statements
Import Cleaner for QuickBooks™
- QuickBooks™ bank CSV, 3 columns: dates, amounts and zeros
- QuickBooks™ bank CSV, 4 columns: Credit and Debit
- QuickBooks™ customers and suppliers import: names, headings and limits
- QuickBooks™ journal entries import: columns, balance and names
- QuickBooks™ report exports in Google Sheets™: titles, totals and text numbers
UK Bank CSV Cleaner
- Bank CSV dates wrong in Google Sheets™: 06/03 read as 3 June
- Bank CSV amounts will not add up: £ signs, commas and text numbers
- Bank CSV with separate Paid in and Paid out columns: one signed amount
- Lay a UK bank CSV out for Xero™, QuickBooks™ or Sage™ bank import
- Bank CSV with extra rows, repeats and duplicates: clean before upload
Payout Export Cleaner
- Payout total does not match its lines: why, and how to find the gap
- Payout fees missing or netted off: how to see what you were charged
- Stripe™ payout reconciliation: split gross, fee and net in Google Sheets™
- Multi-currency payout export: how to check it without converting
- Shopify™ payout export in Google Sheets™: what the add-on checks
- Payout export dates and amounts stored as text: how to fix them safely
Hardcoded Value Detector
- How to find hardcoded values in Google Sheets™
- Find formulas replaced by values in Google Sheets™
- Magic numbers in spreadsheet formulas: why a 1.15 hurts
- Google Sheets™ total not updating? A number was typed over the formula
Two-File Reconciliation
- Reconciling a bank statement against a ledger in Google Sheets™
- Reconciling a CSV export against a Google Sheet™
- Moving from the Excel™ add-in to Google Sheets™
- How to reconcile two Google Sheets™ with different column order
- When one system books amounts as negatives and the other as positives
- VLOOKUP or XLOOKUP not matching in Google Sheets™: spaces, zeros and the sorted trap
Sheet Speed Checker
- Why is my Google Sheet™ so slow? 12 causes and how to find yours
- IMPORTRANGE making Google Sheets™ slow? Import once, reference many
- Google Sheets™ 20 million cell limit: find and delete empty rows safely
- Conditional formatting slowing down Google Sheets™? Merge the fragments
- NOW() and TODAY() in Google Sheets™: the hidden cost of volatile functions
- VLOOKUP on whole columns in Google Sheets™: faster alternatives
Form Response Cleaner
- Count checkbox answers from a Google Form™ (COUNTIF on multi-select)
- Why you shouldn't sort or edit the Form Responses tab (and what to do instead)
- Phone numbers losing the leading zero in Google Form™ responses
- Remove duplicate Google Form™ submissions, keeping the latest
- Google Form™ responses: shorten long question headers without breaking the form
- How to split Google Form™ checkbox responses into separate columns
Mail Merge Pre-flight Check
- Mail merge sent “Hi ,” — how to handle blank first names
- Check an email list for typos and duplicates in Google Sheets™
- Check your list before a Gmail™ mail merge
- Check your list before a GMass merge
- Check your list before a Mailmeteor merge
- Check your list before a YAMM merge
- Gmail™ mail merge fields not working? Check your column headers
- How many emails can I send with a mail merge from Gmail™ per day?
- Mail merge dates showing as numbers in Google Sheets™ (and currency losing its £)
- The mail merge that sent the wrong details to the wrong person
- A pre-send checklist for school newsletters from Google Sheets™
Personal Data and Sharing Check
- Hidden tabs in Google Sheets™ aren't private: here's who can see them
- Does Google Sheets™ version history keep deleted data? How to share a clean copy
- How to check who a Google Sheet™ is shared with (and remove people)
- Find NI numbers, bank details and dates of birth in a Google Sheet™
- Answering a subject access request from a spreadsheet: a step-by-step guide
- Before you share a staff list: a 10-point checklist for Google Sheets™
- IMPORTRANGE and privacy: what people you share with can see
- School data in Google Sheets™: pupil lists, SEN and sharing
Seller Export Cleaner
- Etsy™ payment statement CSV explained, column by column
- How to download your eBay™ transaction report (and join a whole year)
- How to get your Vinted™ sales history for a tax return
- Etsy™ fees in a spreadsheet: transaction, processing, offsite ads and VAT on fees
- Selling on Etsy™, eBay™ and Vinted™: one spreadsheet for all three
Shared Sheet Guardrails
- How to stop people breaking formulas in a shared Google Sheet™
- Google Sheets™ data validation not working when people paste? Here's why
- ARRAYFORMULA #REF! "would overwrite data" — what it means and how to stop it
- Filter views vs filters: stop changing what everyone else sees
- How to lock cells in Google Sheets™ for everyone except you (and what it can't stop)
- A shared rota in Google Sheets™ that people can't break (free template)
- Someone sorted one column: how to find and fix it in Google Sheets™