Introduction
Video: Saving and Sharing Workbooks
Whenever you create a new workbook in Excel, you'll need to know how to save it in order to access and edit it later. As with previous versions of Excel, you can save files locally to your computer. But unlike older versions, Excel 2013 also lets you save a workbook to the cloud using OneDrive. You can also export and share workbooks with others directly from Excel.
OneDrive was previously called SkyDrive. There's nothing fundamentally different about the way OneDrive works—it's just a new name for an existing service. Over the next few months, you may still see SkyDrive in some Microsoft products.
Save and Save As
Excel offers two ways to save a file: Save and Save As. These options work in similar ways, with a few important differences:
Save: When you create or edit a workbook, you'll use the Save command to save your changes. You'll use this command most of the time. When you save a file, you'll only need to choose a file name and location the first time. After that, you can just click the Save command to save it with the same name and location.
Save As: You'll use this command to create a copy of a workbook while keeping the original. When you use Save As, you'll need to choose a different name and/or location for the copied version.
To save a workbook:
It's important to save your workbook whenever you start a new project or make changes to an existing one. Saving early and often can prevent your work from being lost. You'll also need to pay close attention to where you save the workbook so it will be easy to find later.
Locate and select the Save command on the QuickAccess toolbar.
If you're saving the file for the first time, the Save As pane will appear in Backstageview.
You'll then need to choose where to save the file and give it a file name. To save the workbook to your computer, select Computer, then click Browse. Alternatively, you can click OneDrive to save the file to your OneDrive.
The Save As dialog box will appear. Select the location where you want to save the workbook.
Enter a file name for the workbook, then click Save.
The workbook will be saved. You can click the Save command again to save your changes as you modify the workbook.
You can also access the Save command by pressing Ctrl+S on your keyboard.
Using Save As to make a copy
If you want to save a different version of a workbook while keeping the original, you can create a copy. For example, if you have a file named Sales Data, you could save it as Sales Data 2 so you'll be able to edit the new file and still refer back to the original version.
To do this, you'll click the Save As command in Backstage view. Just like when saving a file for the first time, you'll need to choose where to save the file and give it a new file name.
To change the default save location:
If you don't want to use OneDrive, you may be frustrated that OneDrive is selected as the default location when saving. If you find it inconvenient to select Computer each time, you can change the default save location so Computer is selected by default.
Click the File tab to access Backstageview.
Click Options.
The Excel Options dialog box will appear. Select Save, check the box next to Save to Computer by default, then click OK. The default save location will be changed.
Exporting workbooks
By default, Excel workbooks are saved in the .xlsx file type. However, there may be times when you need to use another file type, such as a PDF or Excel 97-2003 workbook. It's easy to export your workbook from Excel in a variety of file types.To export a workbook as a PDF file:
Exporting your workbook as an Adobe Acrobat document, commonly known as a PDF file, can be especially useful if you're sharing a workbook with someone who does not have Excel. A PDF will make it possible for recipients to view but not edit the content of your workbook.- Click the File tab to access Backstage view.
- Click Export, then select Create PDF/XPS.
- The Save As dialog box will appear. Select the location where you want to export the workbook, enter a file name, then click Publish.
By default, Excel will only export the active worksheet. If you have multiple worksheets and want to save all of them in the same PDF file, click Options in the Save as dialog box. The Options dialog box will appear. Select Entire workbook, then click OK.
Whenever you export a workbook as a PDF, you'll also need to consider how your workbook data will appear on each page of the PDF, just like printing a workbook. Visit our Page Layout lesson to learn more about what to consider before exporting a workbook as a PDF.
To export a workbook in other file types:
You may also find it helpful to export your workbook in other file types, such as an Excel 97-2003 workbook if you need to share with people using an older version of Excel, or a .CSV file if you need a plain-text version of your workbook.- Click the File tab to access Backstage view.
- Click Export, then select Change File Type.
- Select a common file type, then click Save As.
- The Save As dialog box will appear. Select the location where you want to export the workbook, enter a file name, then click Save.
You can also use the Save as type: drop-down menu in the Save As dialog box to save workbooks in a variety of file types.
Sharing workbooks
Excel 2013 makes it easy to share and collaborate on workbooks using OneDrive. In the past, if you wanted to share a file with someone you could send it as an email attachment. While convenient, this system also creates multiple versions of the same file, which can be difficult to organize.When you share a workbook from Excel 2013, you're actually giving others access to the exact same file. This lets you and the people you share with edit the same workbook without having to keep track of multiple versions.
In order to share a workbook, it must first be saved to your OneDrive.
To share a workbook:
- Click the File tab to access Backstage view, then click Share.
- The Share pane will appear.
Click the buttons in the interactive below to learn more about different ways to share a workbook.
