Using AI with Excel – Beginner’s Guide to Excel Copilot and AI Features

Artificial Intelligence is redefining how professionals manage and analyze data. The introduction of AI in Excel—particularly with Excel Copilot—has made data handling smarter, faster, and more accessible than ever before. From natural language formula creation to intelligent data cleaning, predictive analytics, and visual recommendations, Excel now acts as a personal data assistant for everyone.

In this beginner’s guide, you’ll explore how to use AI in Excel to automate your workflows, reduce errors, and analyze data effortlessly. You’ll also learn where to find these tools, how to activate them, and how BPA Educators can help you master them with step-by-step practical training.

Why AI in Excel Is a Game Changer for 2025

AI is not just about automation—it’s about smarter decision-making. Microsoft’s integration of AI in Excel allows you to go beyond manual formulas and repetitive tasks, freeing up time for insights and strategy.

• Automates Repetitive Tasks: Let AI handle formula generation, formatting, and report creation.
• Improves Accuracy: Excel AI highlights errors, duplicates, and outliers instantly.
• Delivers Smarter Insights: Turn raw data into dashboards through simple natural language prompts.
• Enhances Accessibility: Even non-technical users can analyze data using everyday English commands.

For those already comfortable with Excel basics, integrating AI can feel like adding a virtual analyst to your workflow. If you’re new, check out our Advanced Excel Training program to build a strong foundation before diving into AI features.

Core AI in Excel Features You Must Master

1. Excel Copilot – The AI Assistant for Every Spreadsheet

The new Excel Copilot acts as a smart assistant that understands your intent. You can type natural language queries such as “Show me top 5 sales regions,” and Excel automatically creates the chart or PivotTable for you. It can also write complex formulas, generate summaries, and explain calculations—all in seconds.

• Ask questions in plain English to get visual or tabular answers.
• Generate formulas automatically for tasks like conditional summaries or trend analysis.
• Receive contextual help while editing large datasets.

For a deeper look into Microsoft’s AI assistant, explore the official Excel Copilot documentation.

2. AI-Powered Data Cleaning and Preparation

Data preparation is often the most time-consuming step in analysis. AI in Excel simplifies it through automated data cleaning suggestions. It detects duplicates, fills missing entries, and standardizes inconsistent data formats like currencies, dates, or product codes.

• Highlight and correct anomalies automatically.
• Apply smart fill and format standardization with one click.
• Detect and merge duplicate entries using AI prompts.

These capabilities mirror what’s available in Power Query but with a far simpler interface. You can also pair this with Power BI integration to perform advanced data cleaning across multiple sources.

3. AI-Driven Formula Suggestions and Automation

Excel now recommends formulas dynamically as you type, thanks to its AI-powered autocomplete. It analyzes the context of your data and suggests logical next steps. This reduces the learning curve for complex array formulas or DAX-like calculations.

For example, typing “=SUM of top 10” automatically triggers AI suggestions for ranking-based aggregation. This feature is especially useful for business analysts managing sales, finance, or HR data.

4. Predictive Analytics and AI Insights

With AI in Excel, you can forecast trends and model what-if scenarios in just a few clicks. Excel Copilot can build predictive models that project revenue, sales growth, or customer churn—features that were previously limited to Power BI or Python.

• Use “Forecast Sheet” to project future values.
• Generate “What-If” models using natural language prompts.
• Create visual dashboards automatically with AI-driven chart suggestions.

Want to combine predictive Excel models with business intelligence? Read our Power BI with Excel Guide to learn about integrated dashboards.

Practical Examples of Using AI in Excel

Example 1: Automating a Sales Summary with Excel Copilot

Upload raw sales data → Ask Copilot “Summarize monthly revenue by region” → Instantly receive a structured table and visual chart. This saves hours of manual pivoting and formula writing.

Example 2: AI-Based Data Cleaning

Import a messy customer list → Enable “Data Cleanup” → Excel highlights duplicate and inconsistent values → Apply one-click fix. AI automatically formats names, dates, and numerical values.

Example 3: Creating a Marketing ROI Dashboard

Ask Copilot: “Show me ROI trends for Q1 and Q2 with a bar chart” → Excel generates a visual dashboard. Customize color, axis, and design instantly without manual chart creation.

How to Access AI Features in Excel

• Ensure you have a valid Microsoft 365 subscription.
• Open the “Analyze Data” pane or the “Copilot Chat” sidebar.
• Enable Beta features for early AI access if available.
• Use Microsoft Learn for tutorials on AI-driven Excel workflows.

You can also follow BPA Educators’ step-by-step sessions in our Excel with AI Course to learn real-world business applications.

Boost Your Productivity with AI in Excel

AI doesn’t replace Excel experts—it makes them more powerful. By combining traditional skills with AI automation, analysts can shift focus from data cleaning to interpretation and strategy.

Learn how AI in Excel fits into modern analytics careers and discover how professionals are combining Excel, Power BI, and Python for advanced decision-making.

Join the Future of Excel Automation

Ready to master AI in Excel? Book a free demo session, Download the Excel AI Features Guide, or Talk to a counselor at BPA Educators, Rohini, Delhi. We offer flexible online batches for working professionals and students alike.