How to save Excel file in Windows 10

Now that your spreadsheet is coming along nicely, you'll want to save your work. To save your spreadsheet, do the following.

Excel 2007 Users

If you have Excel 2007, click the round Office button in the very top left of Excel 2007. This one:

In Excel 2007, you perform all the File operations by clicking the round Office button. Clicking Close, for example, will close the current Excel spreadsheet, but won't close down Excel itself. To close down Excel, click the "Exit Excel" button in the bottom right of this dialogue box. If you want to open a recent Excel document, click its name under the Recent Documents heading.

Your computer’s desktop is often the easiest and most convenient place to store files, especially those you use often. But the desktop is rarely Excel’s default working folder. Instead Excel usually saves to a directory labelled “My Documents” or to a folder within that directory. Fortunately, changing the saving location of a file is a snap in Excel.

1. 1.

   Create or open your file. If this is a new file you’ve just created and are saving it for the first time, proceed to Step 2. If you’re re-saving an existing Excel document, navigate to its location on your computer and open it.

2. 2.

   Launch the save file window. With your Excel file open, click “File” from the menu in the top left-hand corner of Excel. Then click “Save As.” If you’re using a Windows computer, you can also launch the Save File window by pressing the "Control" key and then the “S” key on your keyboard. If you’re using a Mac, press the "Command" key and then the “S” key.

3. 3.

   Type the name of your file into the box beside the words “Save As” at the top of the Save File window.

4. 4.

   Navigate to the Desktop folder in the Save File window. Below the box where you’ve entered the name of your file, you’ll see a series of folders, each of which represents a location on your computer. Click through the folders until you locate the one labelled “Desktop.” On a Mac, you’ll see it on the left-hand side of the Save File window under the heading “Places.” On a PC, its location varies depending on your version of Windows. If your current default working folder is My Documents, click the "Up one level" button until you reach the desktop.

   After you’ve created a workbook, you need to save it if you want to use it again. Also, if you make changes to a workbook you’ll want to save it. You can even save a copy of an existing workbook with a new name, to a different location, or using a different file type.

   Once you’ve created a new workbook, you’ll need to save it if you want to use it again.

   1. Click the Save button.
      

      Press Ctrl + S to quickly save a workbook.

      If this is the first time you’ve saved the workbook, the Save As screen will appear.

   2. Choose where you want to save your file:
      • OneDrive: Save to Microsoft’s cloud-based storage so you can open the worksheet on another computer.
      • SharePoint: Save the workbook to a connected SharePoint server.
      • This PC: Save to the local storage on your computer.
      • Browse: Opens a dialog box, where you can browse through your computer’s folders, drives, and network shares.
   3. Enter a file name.
   4. Click Save.
      

   If an Excel file is saved online, the AutoSave feature in the top-left is automatically turned on. However, this can be changed as needed.

   1. Click the AutoSave toggle button to turn the feature on or off.
      

   As you continue to work in Excel, you'll want to save any changes you make from time to time.

   1. Click the Save button.
      

   Press Ctrl + S to quickly save a workbook.

   Try to save your progress every 10 minutes; that way you won’t lose any important changes if disaster strikes.

   Sometimes you may want to make a copy of an existing workbook and save it with a new name. Using and modifying the content in an existing workbook can often save you a lot of time.

   1. Click the File tab.
      

   2. Click Save As.
   3. Click This PC to navigate to the folder you want to save your file.
      

   4. Enter a File name.
   5. Click Save.
      

   Excel normally saves its files as Excel workbooks, but you can save information to other file formats as well. For example, sometimes you may want to save your data as a Comma Separated Values or CSV file, so you can import it into another program.

   1. Click the File tab.
      

   2. Click Save As.
   3. Click the Save as type list arrow.

      The default file type is an XLSX Excel file, but you can choose from plenty of other file formats in this menu.

   4. Select the desired format.
   5. Click Save.
      

   File TypeExtensionDescriptionCSV.csvComma delimited text file, often used to import/export data.Excel Workbook.xlsxThe default XLM-based file format for Excel, in use since Excel 2007.Excel 97-2003 Workbook.xlsExcel files from Excel 2003 and older.Excel Macro-Enabled Template.xlsmExcel template that contains macros.Excel Template.xltxExcel template files.PDF.pdfPortable Document Format, a format that preserves document formatting and allows file sharing.Web Page.htmlA web page that is saved as a folder and contains an .htm file and supporting files, such as images.

   How do I save an Excel file to my desktop?

   Open Microsoft Excel. Click on the 'File' tab in the top-left corner of the screen. Click on 'Save As' in the menu that appears. In the 'Save As' window that appears, click on the 'Desktop' icon in the left sidebar.

   What's the best format to save Excel files?

   Most of the time, you'll probably want to save your workbooks in the current file format (. xlsx). But sometimes, you might need to save a workbook in another file format, like the file format of an earlier version of Excel, a text file, or a PDF or XPS file.

   Why can't I save as my Excel file?

   You may have problems when you try to save a Microsoft Excel workbook if one or more of the following conditions are true: You save an Excel workbook to a network drive on which you have restricted permissions. You save an Excel workbook to a location that does not have sufficient storage space.

   Where is the Excel file in Windows 10?

   Choose Start, type the name of the application, like Word or Excel, in the Search programs and files box. In the search results, click the application to start it. Choose Start > All Programs to see a list of all your applications.