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This article will show you how to compare two spreadsheets by opening them simultaneously for viewing in Excel 2010 (2003 – 2013).
You need to compare two Excel sheets and for this you want to arrange them side by side. As simple as this task may seem, the sheets open in the same window every time. Here’s the trouble! So, we will give you step by step instructions on how to open two Excel files (.xls or . Xlsx) for viewing by placing them side by side. You can choose from the following options:
- Open and view two sheets or two workbooks side by side in one window:
- View two different workbooks at the same time
- View two different sheets of the same Excel workbook at the same time
- Or you can view two or more workbooks in multiple windows.
Use the View tab
Let’s start with the first option. First, open the two workbooks you want to compare. Two icons of open Excel workbooks appeared on the Windows taskbar. When you click on any of them, the workbook opens in the same window. Find a section Window (Window) tab View (View) and click View Side by Side (Beside).
Arrange the sheets however you like.
By default, spreadsheets will be shown as separate horizontal panes. You may want to change their orientation. To do this, press the button Arrange All (Organize All) and select an option Vertical (Left to Right) to arrange Excel workbooks side by side vertically in the left and right half of the window.
There is another possibility that you will like. Click Synchronous Scrolling (Synchronous scrolling) to scroll through both tables at the same time, compare and find differences.
Excel will remember which view mode you have selected and will open files in the same way in the future.
Sometimes it may be necessary to view multiple sheets of the same workbook. All you have to do is open the book and press the command New Window (New window) tab View (View). You can press the button New Window (New Window) multiple times to view as many sheets of the same workbook as needed at the same time.
View two (or more) Excel workbooks in multiple windows
You can view multiple Excel workbooks at once in separate windows. This can be especially handy if you have two monitors connected. So, first we open one file. Then through the menu Start restart Excel. As a result, in this new window you will be able to open another workbook and modify it as you wish.
We hope this instruction will be useful to anyone who wants to compare data from different workbooks or from different sheets.