How to Reduce Excel File Size

Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet program developed by Microsoft and is available for users on platforms such as Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS.

The possibilities of what one can do with Excel are endless. The user can perform calculations, compute capabilities, and create tables, graphs, and models for their project. Microsoft Excel is part of Microsoft Office's suite of software.

Microsoft Office Suite features similar productivity programs such as Word, PowerPoint, OneNote, Teams, Outlook, and OneDrive. However, all of these serve different purposes and achieve different outcomes depending on how the user utilizes them.

Microsoft Excel was released on November 19, 1987 (34 years ago). Since then, the program has been constantly updated with new versions of its software, making it easier for users to utilize and take advantage of its capabilities.

Excel nowadays is so advanced that its software can learn the users' patterns and help organize one's data to save time and be more efficient. For example, the user can create a blank template for their spreadsheet or use various templates.

There are various charts and graphs to help the user visualize their data and findings in a more intuitive and visually-appealing way so that upon presentation, the audience and the presenter can understand it.

What is the file size?

The file size is a tool to measure how big or small a computer data, program, or software is. Alternatively, it can be understood as how much space it consumes on your computing platform, whether Apple's MacBook or Windows PC.

Usually, the unit of measurement for file sizes is measured in bytes. The most common byte that users come across is either kilobyte (KB), megabyte (MB), gigabyte (GB), or terabyte (TB).

The best way to understand file size is to take a .jpeg file for a photo. For example, the higher the resolution for the photo (1080p and higher), the bigger the file size will be. Professional photography pictures can go up to hundreds of GB, depending on the picture quality.

Big file sizes can cause many problems to its user because their computing platform may not withstand the size, causing the computer to lag or freeze. Not having enough storage space on your computer also causes problems.

Nowadays, users tend to purchase an external hard drive or thumb drive, which ultimately lets users transfer files from their computer onto the hard drive to free up space on their computer.

Why is my excel file size so large?

What could make your Excel file so large could be due to several reasons. Firstly, it could be all the abovementioned things regarding picture size, file format, and pivot table cache within the file.

However, other reasons it can be so large could be that the data you are analyzing on your spreadsheet might contain too much data.

Your computer/laptop might be a bit old, and its lifespan is ending; therefore, software tends to run slower on those devices. Slow software and hardware can heavily affect the computer's size and speed of performance.

In addition to just pictures, your graphing tables or charts, if they include a lot of data that are very detailed and graphic, can slow not only the Excel speed down, but when saving, the file size can be heavily affected, which in turn also affects productivity afterward.

Methods for reducing Excel file size

Large Excel file sizes can become very inconvenient for users, whether students or working-class individuals. Users are creating Excel spreadsheets because they intend to present a set of data to an audience. 

When users need to present their Excel file, if they need to send it to their manager or their peers and the file size is too big, there are a lot of barriers to come their way when trying to achieve something.

Emails do not let you send file sizes that exceed the size limit; free online storage websites also have a limit, and it is very time-consuming to place your file onto a thumb drive or hard drive and then transfer the data to your peers. That's why understanding Excel file size is important.

There are many ways to reduce your Excel file size. Below are a few ways that can work so that the next time you transfer your file from one place to another, it may not be so time-consuming and frustrating.

1. You can save your Excel file in a binary format (.xlsb) instead of its default format (.xlsx). The default format is useful when users want to share their files with third-party programs because those programs recognize it as an Excel spreadsheet.

• Go to File → Options → Save.
• Under the Save Workbooks section, click on the save files in this format drop-down link, and select Excel Binary Workbook.
• This changes the default format from .xlsx to .xlsb permanently. If you wish to keep the default format as .xlsx, select Save as an option.

2. You can reduce the number of worksheets in your Excel file; if you have a lot of new worksheets that do not contain any formulas or important data, remove them from your spreadsheet.

3. Additionally, save your images in Excel at a lesser resolution.

• Select File Options Advanced to accomplish this.

• Select Discard editing data from the Image Size and Quality menu.

• Verify that the option to not compress photos in the file is chosen.

• Lastly, choose a resolution of 150 ppi or less from the list of default resolutions.

4. Additionally, you can compress images to reduce the size at which they are saved.

• The picture Format tab should show on the ribbon after you choose a picture in your project.

• Choose Compress Pictures from the Adjust category under the Picture Format tab.

• Take the following action under Compression options:

a. First, clear the file if you wish to compress all the images. Then, choose "only apply to this image." The modifications you make here will only impact the selected image if this option is chosen.

b. Choose to Delete cropped portions of images. The cropped image data is removed with this choice, but you can't get it back.

• Do the following under Resolution:

a. Use default resolution should be chosen.

5. This pertains to spreadsheet users who use pivot tables.

6. Save the pivot cache separately from the file.

• Any cell in the pivot table can be chosen.

• Select Options under the PivotTable group on the PivotTable Analyze tab.

• Select the Data tab in the PivotTable Options dialogue box, and take the following actions:

a. First, Uncheck the File source data should be saved.

b. Then, once the file has been opened, choose Refresh data.

These are a few methods you can use to reduce the size of your Excel file so that emailing it to your peers or coworkers will be more convenient.

Different versions of Excel

With Excel being released over 30 years ago, as technology advances and time passes, versions of Microsoft Excel are bound to be improved. So, just the same with other platforms of productivity, new versions of the program get released over the years.

The company can introduce new features and settings to the market with new versions and increase brand loyalty. If a group of the audience says that things need improvement and the company does that, it makes the audience feel they are heard.

Certain settings and applications apply differently. For example, newer functions used today may not necessarily work with older versions of Excel because its system has yet to function to perform this formula and vice-versa.

That is why users must keep their computers updated with the latest software and programs inside the computer. It lets users use the most up-to-date functions and features and prevents data damage or loss.

Researched & Authored by Mong Lau | LinkedIn

Reviewed & edited by Parul Gupta | LinkedIn

Free Resources

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• Advanced Excel Formulas
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