Products · Product
Microsoft Excel
Raised as a usability problem by 520 people on Hacker News over 20 years (2007–2026), in 388 threads.
No issue was raised by at least 3 people in 3 threads this year.
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- 30Sluggish UI and slow load times on macOSUnreviewed
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Every issue, all time, most people first
Opening CSVs silently alters identifiers, wasting hours of fixingUnreviewed
20072026- CSV import mangles data, turning values into dates unexpectedly2026-06-18
- Double-clicking a CSV opens PowerQuery instead of a simple import window, hard to reuse2025-12-08
- Automatically converts gene names and zip codes, mangling data unless users know workarounds2025-10-30
Spreadsheets are hard to read, audit or track changes inUnreviewed
20072026- Sharing and collaborating on spreadsheets is a painful, backwards process involving emailed file copies2026-02-15
- Spreadsheets have bugs and are hard to work with2025-12-09
- Excel used as a database is brittle and error-prone, with a risk of silent breakage2025-05-01
Typed values silently become dates, and the original entry is lostUnreviewed
20072026- Silently alters entered numbers via scientific notation, rounding and date conversion despite text formatting2025-10-29
- Typing 1/2 gets silently turned into a date, so adding 1 gives an unexpected result2025-04-07
- Pasted values like hashes and date parts get silently converted to numbers or scientific notation, with no global way to turn it off2023-02-17
CSV files open incorrectly in some locales unless the separator changesUnreviewed
20072026- Misreads CSV decimal separators that differ from the locale setting2025-09-10
- Numbers in CSV files misread as text or wrong values depending on regional settings2025-03-26
- CSV delimiter changes with system language, breaking files exchanged across regions2024-06-09
Spreadsheets are error prone and hide formulas from othersUnreviewed
20072026- Long formulas on one line with no nesting or colour make them hard to check2024-11-03
- Formulas don't stay consistent across rows and users accidentally overwrite or remove them2023-06-06
- Mixed raw data, formulas and formatting make errors hard to spot and verify2023-06-06
Localized function names break formulas across language versionsUnreviewed
20072026- Formulas sometimes use localised function names, confusing users who don't expect it2025-11-10
- Formulas are translated per locale, so English SUM fails to compute in Norwegian Excel2025-09-09
- Forces Norwegian formula names on an English user and misreads text as dates2025-08-12
Data silently truncated or reformatted, so changes go unnoticedUnreviewed
20072026- Excel silently truncates or reformats data, so users don't realize their values changed2023-08-22
- Excel changes entered data without being told, forcing repeated searches to fix2022-08-06
- Excel auto-converts typed values with no option to turn it off2021-08-17
Editing charts takes many clicks and is tediousUnreviewed
20072026- Default charts are hard to make usable for scientific publication2026-02-21
- Changing line type in chart formatting is buggy and the chart UI is terrible2024-08-04
- Chart creation feels awkward and clunky to use2021-07-19
Copy, cut and paste behave against the user's intentUnreviewed
20072026- Cut and paste behaves confusingly, as the person experiences it2026-07-23
- Copy/cut/paste behaves in the worst way for the user's intent, feels unintuitive2026-07-22
- Cut and paste errors happen too easily, silently altering data without users noticing2024-12-24
Mac keyboard shortcuts differ from Windows and frustrate usersUnreviewed
20072026- Excel keyboard shortcuts use random letters, so they are hard to remember2026-03-24
- Familiar desktop Excel keyboard shortcuts are broken in the browser version2024-02-29
- Excel on Mac has different keyboard shortcuts that the user finds frustrating2023-11-10
Advanced features are undiscoverable without tutorialsUnreviewed
20072026- Making charts or aggregate data requires knowing how to operate Excel2026-10-31
- Software's hidden and non-intuitive mechanics make it easy for non-experts to err2024-09-15
- Spreadsheets mix charts, merged cells and formulas, so the data is hard to process2024-05-17
Accidental Enter leaves formula editor and triggers unparseable-formula errorsUnreviewed
20072026- Formula editing randomly throws errors and warnings when moving the cursor2024-08-02
- Cannot freely edit a formula like text; the default mode gets in the way2022-12-29
- Formula box lacks code-editor basics like syntax highlighting and indentation2022-10-24
Pressing F1 for help gives unhelpful resultsUnreviewed
20072026- Accidentally pressing F1 opens a Help window that must be closed with the mouse2021-03-08
- Pressing F1 for help is an annoying, unhelpful experience2017-11-22
- Pressing F1 opens slow help that can't be dismissed while the browser launches2017-09-22
Setting up pivot tables properly takes a while and is hardUnreviewed
20072026- Users took a long time to adjust to the ribbon and some still can't work the new pivot table UI2024-02-27
- Takes a while to set up pivot tables properly, UI hard to use2023-10-09
- Users can't work directly in pivot tables, so they build manual SUM formulas to get summary data2023-03-19
VLOOKUP takes minutes on a few hundred thousand recordsUnreviewed
20072026- VLOOKUP has usability pitfalls and is still the main way to relate data2021-03-09
- Lookups across hundreds of thousands of rows take minutes to complete2021-02-14
- VLOOKUP takes minutes on a few hundred thousand records, maddening for one column2021-02-14
Viewing data requires the editor and opens in the last edited stateUnreviewed
20072026- Excel forces a document paradigm; viewing data requires the editor and opens in the last edited state2024-03-24
- Editor window is modal, blocking all open spreadsheets, and debugging is primitive2021-03-30
- Excel interrupts with an update popup on open, forcing a multi-minute wait before editing2020-08-29
Ribbon is cluttered and shortcut key hints are hard to followUnreviewed
20072026- Hidden options behind extra clicks make the ribbon slow to search and harder to learn2023-03-17
- Ribbon looks cluttered and shortcut key hints are hard to follow2022-03-25
- Newer versions with the ribbon interface are frustrating to use compared to earlier ones2021-12-27
Formula syntax needs several intermediate steps to get resultsUnreviewed
20072026- Formula syntax is awkward, needing several intermediate steps to get results2022-05-17
- Formulas must use semicolons instead of commas, which is confusing and error-prone2021-02-06
- Excel's formula and VBA syntax is hard to learn2020-10-27
Scrolling thousands of rows in Excel Online is laggyUnreviewed
20072026- Scrolling through thousands of rows in Excel Online is laggy2022-03-21
- Scrolling becomes problematic on large, complex spreadsheets2019-11-25
- Scrolling lags so badly it is hard to scan through data2018-06-14
Dragging, copying and cutting treat formula references differentlyUnreviewed
20072026- Cut-and-paste breaks formulas referencing the paste destination, forcing a manual copy-paste-delete workaround2026-07-23
- Complex tasks need lots of hard-to-follow magic in formulas2022-04-01
- Complex hard-to-adjust formulas and copy/paste mistakes when humans are involved2022-03-06
Arrow keys sometimes insert cell references and sometimes move the cursorUnreviewed
20072026- Arrow keys unexpectedly jump to another cell while editing, instead of moving within the text2026-02-21
- No visible indication whether arrow keys insert cell references or move the cursor2025-07-04
- Arrow keys sometimes insert cell references and sometimes move the cursor, with no clear indication2022-12-30
Named ranges pile up, so others can't tell what they refer toUnreviewed
20072026- Editing named ranges is trickier, requiring a hunt for Name Manager2022-08-13
- Naming cells or ranges is not intuitive and not taught, so people rarely use it2020-12-31
- Named ranges pile up in big workbooks, so others can't tell what they refer to2016-09-08
Tracking ranges and cross-sheet references is hard in large workbooksUnreviewed
20072026- Using a spreadsheet of notes for task tracking is clumsy and disorganized2025-06-23
- Workbooks with hundreds of sheets are hard to navigate2021-09-18
- Tracking ranges and cross-sheet cell references becomes a nightmare in large multisheet workbooks2012-09-09
Familiar shortcuts stopped working after upgrading to 2007Unreviewed
20072026- Control+Backspace and Control+Shift+Left word-selection shortcuts unsupported, unlike other apps2023-10-23
- Can't customize all keyboard shortcuts anymore and can't even find where to access them2019-07-26
- Familiar keyboard shortcuts stopped producing expected results after upgrading to 20072012-04-28
Cells are too easy to change by accident, causing mistakesUnreviewed
20072026- Editing and pressing enter updates only one cell, not the others2025-01-26
- Changing cells is too easy, so users misclick and make mistakes2017-02-16
- A stray keystroke silently overwrites a cell, and the user can't tell what changed2014-02-04
Animated text input and cell transitions make the sheet feel slowUnreviewed
20072026- Noticeable lag after typing a value in a cell and pressing enter2025-05-01
- Waiting about a second for each cell to advance when moving through Excel2022-07-21
- Spreadsheet feels slow because of animated text input and cell transitions2020-07-29
Lookup formulas are hard to use and offer no easier interfaceUnreviewed
20072026- Doing the lookup needs a separate ETL step or a newer function version, so it is not simple in Excel2022-08-12
- Lookup formulas are hard to use and forced on people, no easier interface2019-08-31
- Multi-column lookup needs convoluted, brittle workarounds to do simple tasks2015-05-31
Autocomplete silently corrupts entered data, such as gene namesUnreviewed
20072026- Silently corrupts data like gene names, and users only notice after the damage is done2026-03-20
- Autocomplete silently corrupts entered data, such as gene names2025-03-28
- Autocorrect silently changes entered data, so users miss the errors it introduces2021-08-17
Sluggish UI and slow load times on macOSUnreviewed
20072026- Cluttered, poorly designed interface and frequent crashes2017-11-25
- Interface feels laggy and slow to respond on macOS2017-03-31
- Sluggish UI, slow load times and frequent crashes on macOS2014-04-04
Non-technical users can't combine tables in Power Query without expertsUnreviewed
20072026- Hard to design a UI for combining spreadsheets with SQL querying well2022-08-04
- Non-technical Excel users find combining tables in Power Query impossible without expert help2022-06-08
- Can't find a workable way to query Excel tables; DAX feels inconsistent and illogical2019-10-31
Search is now just an icon, requiring an extra click before typingUnreviewed
20072026- Activating the search box is slow, and selecting the first result needs an extra arrow key press2023-09-13
- Search is now just an icon, requiring an extra click before typing2019-12-25
- Search bar isn't prominent, so the user briefly couldn't tell where to search2019-05-06
Mouse-and-keyboard design makes cells hard to use on a phoneUnreviewed
20072026- Clicking many spreadsheet cells by touch is tiring and painful with arm raised2023-07-12
- Excel's mouse-and-keyboard design makes cells hard to use with touch on a phone2023-06-15
- Spreadsheets are impractical to use on phone touch interfaces, affecting all users2023-05-20
Unreviewed issues were grouped by machine: Claude Haiku labelled each comment as a usability complaint, named what it's about and summed up the problem in a line, and a small model grouped similar problems. Nobody has checked them by hand. Expect mistakes.
The newest 50 complaints
- Making charts or aggregate data requires knowing how to operate Excel2026-10-31
- Excel's usability is being degraded by SharePoint integration2026-10-26
- Can't see the active cell at a glance and must click around to save locally2026-09-07
- Row-number references make it harder to find things and invite mistakes2026-08-13
- Users get lost in a different spreadsheet program because the expected buttons and icons are missing2026-08-03
- Modeling waterfalls in Excel involves fragile formula chains, hidden circular references, and slow spreadsheet bloat2026-07-24
- Cut and paste behaves confusingly, as the person experiences it2026-07-23
- Cut-and-paste breaks formulas referencing the paste destination, forcing a manual copy-paste-delete workaround2026-07-23
- Copy/cut/paste behaves in the worst way for the user's intent, feels unintuitive2026-07-22
- Small delays when editing fields and switching tabs, from background network connections2026-06-25
- CSV import mangles data, turning values into dates unexpectedly2026-06-18
- Excel was basically unusable on network drives because of excessive tiny reads2026-06-16
- UI wastes screen space with ever-larger non-touch elements, making it objectively worse2026-04-15
- Excel keyboard shortcuts use random letters, so they are hard to remember2026-03-24
- Silently corrupts data like gene names, and users only notice after the damage is done2026-03-20
- Feels heavier and more complicated than needed for quick everyday table tasks2026-03-11
- Horizontal lines appear on screen while scrolling2026-03-10
- Macros silently do nothing on Mac with no error shown2026-03-10
- Scroll Lock turns on unexpectedly and makes Excel unusable until toggled off2026-03-07
- Arrow keys unexpectedly jump to another cell while editing, instead of moving within the text2026-02-21
- Default charts are hard to make usable for scientific publication2026-02-21
- Clicking, clipboard and scrolling behave unexpectedly, hard to predict or understand2026-02-21
- Suggested Alt+Ē shortcut cannot be typed, since the accent key combo doesn't work inside shortcuts2026-02-18
- Sharing and collaborating on spreadsheets is a painful, backwards process involving emailed file copies2026-02-15
- Spreadsheet automatic coloring gets in the way when editing shared files2026-02-06
- Web version doesn't work for the accountant's needs, so he sticks with the desktop version2026-01-27
- Error messages are comically unhelpful and syntax checking constantly interrupts typing2025-12-21
- Spreadsheets have bugs and are hard to work with2025-12-09
- Double-clicking a CSV opens PowerQuery instead of a simple import window, hard to reuse2025-12-08
- Formulas sometimes use localised function names, confusing users who don't expect it2025-11-10
- Infrequent use makes Excel unintuitive, so simpler conversion round-trip is faster2025-11-09
- Simplified defaults force extra clicks, making daily work too annoying2025-11-07
- Automatically converts gene names and zip codes, mangling data unless users know workarounds2025-10-30
- Excel converts long numbers to scientific notation, causing repeated data loss2025-10-29
- Silently alters entered numbers via scientific notation, rounding and date conversion despite text formatting2025-10-29
- Inserting a row takes 5-10 seconds and freezes the whole app meanwhile2025-10-28
- Linking a CSV file is slow because the dialog offers many conversions and adjustments2025-10-28
- Programming in Excel is unintuitive for people trying to program2025-10-27
- Leading zeroes in ZIP codes get stripped, and formula cells look like static cells so they are easily overwritten2025-10-16
- Auto-formatting silently corrupts data through unexplained bad defaults2025-10-16
- Identifiers like OCT4 are silently converted to dates on import, with no easy way to prevent it2025-10-16
- Misreads CSV decimal separators that differ from the locale setting2025-09-10
- Excel drops timezone info from datetimes, so users must work out the timezone every time2025-09-10
- Formulas are translated per locale, so English SUM fails to compute in Norwegian Excel2025-09-09
- Decimal separator tied to locale, forcing manual changes and clicking through wizard to paste data2025-08-12
- Forces Norwegian formula names on an English user and misreads text as dates2025-08-12
- Undo in one workbook silently reverts changes in another workbook with the same name2025-08-12
- Interface is utter madness, and it obscures code making reasoning about it almost impossible2025-08-12
- Hard to produce correctly formatted documents when OS and document languages differ2025-08-12
- Commenter finds Excel counterintuitive and hard to understand2025-08-04