Do you ever need to insert files into Excel, so you can share more comprehensive information with your colleagues? Either to insert PDF into Excel or to insert word documents into Excel, it’s just as simple as clicking on Insert, Text, Object, choosing your file, and voila!
Then, what happens after? Your file will float around your spreadsheet and not into a single cell. Yet, to be able to sort or move it with the rest of the content, what you really need is to put it into a single cell. How can you do this?
In this brief article, we will see how Excel can better handle your attachments, then we will look into an alternative that integrates with Excel: RowShare, an online table that offers a collaboration solution.
Insert Files into Excel Sheet
There are several ways to insert files into Excel sheet. You can either create from files, create new or add link to files. We will explore how to do it one by one.
If you want to create from an existing file, follow these steps:
- Select the cell into which you want to insert your file
- Click on the “Insert” tab
- Click on “Object” under the “Text” group
- Select “Create from File”
- Browse your file
- Select the “Display as icon” check box to if you want to insert an icon linking to the files
- Click on “OK”
Another possibility is to create a new file. You can do that by selecting “Create New” instead, and choose the type of object you want to attach. A new window will then pop up and you can create a new file you want to insert.
If you only want to add a link to the file instead of embedding the file, select the “Link to File” check box. The file should be stored in a location accessible to those with whom you want to share it. If the link to your file redirects to your computer, you will be the only one able to open it. Other than that, the location of the file should remain the same, if you move it to different location, the link won’t work anymore.
Attach Files in Excel, Within Excel Cells
Once you have made it to insert word documents into Excel or attach PDF to Excel, you probably realize that what you need is to insert your file into a single cell. To do this, follow these steps:
- Resize your file or cell until they fit each other
- Right click on your file and select “Format Object”
- Click on the “Properties” tab
- Select “Move and size with cells”
Since your Excel file size will be the size of the sheet itself plus the size of each other files attached, your Excel size will then be so huge. Also, as you can see here, there is no direct way to insert your file to an Excel cell automatically.
So, crunch time: Should I follow all these long endless steps or should I stick to the traditional way and exchange my files using email instead?
Attach Files Easily with RowShare
It’s time to say goodbye to complicated spreadsheet and endless email exchange. RowShare, an online table focusing in sharing and collaboration, offers a simpler solution. You can insert attachments within a click of a mouse! Start by creating a table from RowShare’s templates or from scratch.
Attach your files by following these super simple steps:
- Add a column of type “File” to your table
- Click on the cell, browse your file and attach it to your RowShare table
You can also control your table and files the way you want it, from sorting, filtering, setting columns as read only, you name it. It couldn’t be any simpler, here is a quick video if you need help:
Tip: If you already have your table in Excel, import it to RowShare and change the appropriate column type to File. Then, click on the cell and upload the file.
Once you have finished adjusting your table in RowShare, you can then synchronize it with Excel to access the best features of both tools. When synchronizing with Excel, instead of having the file itself, you will have the link of the file in your Excel sheet.
Happy RowSharing!
