In this first course of the specialization Excel Skills for Business, you will learn the essentials of Microsoft Excel. Within six weeks, you will be able to expertly navigate the Excel user interface, perform basic calculations with formulas and functions, professionally format spreadsheets, and create visualizations of data through charts and graphs.
Excel Skills for Business: Essentials
Give your career the gift of Coursera Plus with $160 off, billed annually. Save today.
Excel Skills for Business: Essentials
This course is part of Excel Skills for Business Specialization
Instructors: Nicky Bull
950,397 already enrolled
Included with 
Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
4.9
(49,121 reviews)
Beginner level
Recommended experience
Flexible schedule
Approx. 26 hours
Learn at your own pace
98%
Most learners liked this course
Skills you'll gain
Details to know
Shareable certificate
Add to your LinkedIn profile
Assessments
40 assignments
Taught in English
See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills
Build your subject-matter expertise
This course is part of the Excel Skills for Business Specialization
When you enroll in this course, you'll also be enrolled in this Specialization.
- Learn new concepts from industry experts
- Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
- Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
- Earn a shareable career certificate
Earn a career certificate
Add this credential to your LinkedIn profile, resume, or CV
Share it on social media and in your performance review
There are 7 modules in this course
In this module, you will learn about key foundational features of Excel: The Excel user interface, basic Excel terminology, how to operate essential navigational controls in Excel and how to perform basic data entry with Excel spreadsheets.
What's included
10 videos8 readings8 assignments1 discussion prompt
The syntax of formulas is very important in Excel. In this module, you will get introduced to formulas and functions - learn how to write them, use them to perform calculations and understand the different cell references.
What's included
11 videos5 readings7 assignments
Formatting helps to highlight key messages and make the data presentable. This module covers several formatting tools like font formatting, borders, alignment, number formatting, as well as the Excel styles and themes.
What's included
10 videos4 readings7 assignments
This module is all about working with data – and making it easy to work with. This week you will learn how you can manage your spreadsheets – find data with Filter and Sort, retrieve and change data using Find and Replace, and use Conditional Formatting to highlight specific data.
What's included
9 videos3 readings6 assignments
Sometimes you need to print your spreadsheets and this module will help you with that. Learn how you can optimise your spreadsheet for printing by managing margins, orientation, headers & footers, and more.
What's included
9 videos5 readings6 assignments
Charts are one of the most common ways to present data visually. This module walks you through creating and modifying charts in Excel.
What's included
8 videos4 readings5 assignments
What's included
1 assignment
Instructors
Instructor ratings
4.9 (16,680 ratings)Offered by
Recommended if you're interested in Business Essentials
Macquarie University
Macquarie University
Macquarie University
Macquarie University
Why people choose Coursera for their career
Felipe M.
Learner since 2018
"To be able to take courses at my own pace and rhythm has been an amazing experience. I can learn whenever it fits my schedule and mood."
Jennifer J.
Learner since 2020
"I directly applied the concepts and skills I learned from my courses to an exciting new project at work."
Larry W.
Learner since 2021
"When I need courses on topics that my university doesn't offer, Coursera is one of the best places to go."
Chaitanya A.
"Learning isn't just about being better at your job: it's so much more than that. Coursera allows me to learn without limits."
Learner reviews
Showing 3 of 49121
4.9
49,121 reviews
- 5 stars
88.71%
- 4 stars
10.20%
- 3 stars
0.70%
- 2 stars
0.14%
- 1 star
0.23%
New to Business Essentials? Start here.
Open new doors with Coursera Plus
Unlimited access to 7,000+ world-class courses, hands-on projects, and job-ready certificate programs - all included in your subscription
Advance your career with an online degree
Earn a degree from world-class universities - 100% online
Join over 3,400 global companies that choose Coursera for Business
Upskill your employees to excel in the digital economy
Frequently asked questions
In this course, we are using Microsoft Excel 2016 (Office 365) on a Windows PC with all options set to default. The Office 365 version of Excel is the latest version at the time of writing and developing this course. If you have a different version of Excel or you are using a Mac, some tools and buttons will look different, they may be located in a different spot, or some might be missing altogether. If there are any major differences, we usually point them out during the practice videos. If you cannot find a tool that we mention, you can always ask in the forums or search the Internet. Most of the functionality we demonstrate is also available in other spreadsheet programs, although the interface will look different. Most other spreadsheet software can import and export files in the Microsoft Excel format. If you are not sure which version of Excel you are using, check the Microsoft support pages for help.
If you cannot use Excel 2016 on a PC, you will be able to follow along with the videos, however, please note that some of the assessment tasks will require Excel. Where possible, we have designed assessment tasks so that users of older versions of Excel (such as 2013) can still solve them.
Access to lectures and assignments depends on your type of enrollment. If you take a course in audit mode, you will be able to see most course materials for free. To access graded assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience, during or after your audit. If you don't see the audit option:
The course may not offer an audit option. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid.
The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.