Microsoft 365 Excel 2026 – Beginner

Learn Excel from Zero, Free

44 short video lessons with step-by-step guides, quizzes and practice files. Go from “where do I click?” to building, formatting and printing your own spreadsheets in Excel for Microsoft 365. 100% free. No credit card. Learn at your own pace. The first 3 lessons are open to everyone, no sign-up needed.

What you’ll be able to do

• • Find your way around Excel with confidence: the Start screen, Ribbon, Quick Access Toolbar and keyboard shortcuts

• • Create, save and open workbooks without losing your work

• • Enter and edit text, numbers, dates and times, then sort your data and use Find and Replace

• • Write your first formulas, and understand cell references (relative and absolute) and the order of operations

• • Total, average and count your data with SUM, MIN, MAX, AVERAGE, COUNT and COUNTA

• • Organize worksheets: insert rows and columns, resize, hide, rename, copy and delete sheets

• • Make your data easy to read with borders, number and percentage formats, cell styles and conditional formatting

• • Add images, shapes and SmartArt, print neatly, and save time with templates

What’s included, free

• • 44 short video lessons, most just 1 to 3 minutes, so you can learn in small bites

• • Step-by-step written guides with screenshots in every lesson, so you can read along or come back later

• • Key takeaways at the end of every lesson

• • 9 section quizzes (5 questions each) to check what you’ve learned

• • Practice files for every section: a Start workbook to try it yourself and a Solution workbook to check your answers

• • A Final Project case study: build a small café’s monthly budget using everything from the course

• • An Excel cheat sheet with shortcuts for Windows and Mac

• • Progress tracking, so you always know where you left off

How it works

Course curriculum: 9 sections, 44 lessons

Each section builds on the last, from your first click to a finished, printed spreadsheet. Every section ends with a short quiz and comes with its own practice workbook.

1. Getting Started with Excel (3 lessons, free preview)

What Excel is, why it’s still the #1 skill at work, and how to open Excel and start your first workbook.

2. First Steps in Excel (8 lessons)

The Start screen, the workspace, the Ribbon and Quick Access Toolbar, creating, saving and opening files, and the keyboard shortcuts that save you time.

3. Entering and Editing Data (8 lessons)

Typing and editing data, numbers, dates and times, Find and Replace, sorting, cell references and the order of operations in formulas.

4. Essential Excel Functions (5 lessons)

How functions work, plus SUM, MIN and MAX, AVERAGE, and COUNT and COUNTA.

5. Working with Worksheets (7 lessons)

Moving and copying data, adding and removing rows and columns, resizing, hiding, renaming, deleting and duplicating worksheets.

6. Formatting Your Data (5 lessons)

Borders, number and percentage formats, merge and center, cell styles and an introduction to conditional formatting.

7. Visual Elements (2 lessons)

Insert images and shapes, and create diagrams with SmartArt.

8. Printing and Page Layout (3 lessons)

Print Preview, margins, scaling and orientation, so your sheets print neatly on the first try.

9. Templates (3 lessons)

Use Excel’s built-in templates and design your own, then put it all together in the Final Project.

Frequently asked questions

Is this course really free?

Yes. All 44 lessons, the quizzes and the practice files are free. There’s no credit card and no trial that turns into a subscription. You just need a free account to unlock Lessons 4 to 44.

Which version of Excel do I need? Does it work on a Mac?

The lessons are shown in Excel for Microsoft 365, the version most people have today. If you have a recent desktop version of Excel, most lessons will work the same way. Mac and Excel on the web work too, but some buttons, menus and features look or work a little differently. The cheat sheet includes both Windows and Mac shortcuts to help.

Do I need to buy Microsoft 365?

You need access to Excel to practice along. This course teaches Excel; it doesn’t include the Excel software, which comes from Microsoft. Many people already have it through work, school or a home Microsoft 365 plan.

How long does it take to finish?

Most lessons are 1 to 3 minutes of video, plus a few minutes to read the steps and try them yourself. Many learners can finish in a few weekends, but you can go at whatever pace suits you, and your progress is saved.

What are the practice files and how do I use them?

Each section has a Start workbook and a Solution workbook. Open the Start file, follow along with the lesson, then compare your work with the Solution file. You’ll also get a Final Project (a small café’s monthly budget) and a Windows/Mac cheat sheet. You can download them from the lesson pages, or get all of them in one zip from the Materials tab on this course page once you’re enrolled.

Do I need an account?

Not to try it. Lessons 1 to 3 are open to everyone. To unlock the rest of the lessons, the quizzes, the practice files and progress tracking, create a free account. It takes about a minute.

I’m a complete beginner. Is this the right course?

Yes. We start from the very first click: what a spreadsheet is, how to open Excel and how to find your way around. No experience needed.

What should I take after this course?

Excel 2026 Intermediate (PivotTables, charts, XLOOKUP and more), then Advanced. Both are available on USB today, or get all three levels in the Complete 3-in-1 Bundle. One-time purchase, no monthly fee.

Start learning Excel today

Your first lesson takes about 2 minutes. Watch it now, free, with no sign-up needed.

Practice files

Download all Practice Files (Start + Solution)