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Export Smartsheet to Excel

Smartsheet's native Excel export is buried under File > Export and always exports the entire sheet, including columns and rows you do not need. Teams that share data with stakeholders who use Excel — finance, legal, or external partners — regularly have to export, open the file, delete irrelevant columns, and reformat before sending. Filtered views are not respected by the native export.

Without Grid Tools

The daily workaround

Navigate to File > Export
The export option is not accessible from the toolbar — users must open the File menu and locate the export option each time.
Full sheet exported every time
Native export includes all columns and all rows, regardless of any active filter or which columns are relevant to the recipient.
Post-export cleanup in Excel
After downloading, users open the file and delete columns, reorder fields, or reformat the sheet before sharing with external recipients.
Filtered view not preserved
Active Smartsheet filters are ignored by the native export, so hidden rows appear in the exported Excel file and must be removed manually.
Screenshot: File menu with Export option in Smartsheet
Navigating to File > Export > Export as Excel in native Smartsheet
Screenshot: Full sheet exported including hidden rows
Exported file includes all rows — active filter is ignored
Screenshot: Deleting unwanted columns in Excel after export
Removing irrelevant columns in Excel before sharing with stakeholders

With Grid Tools

How Grid Tools handles it

Export from the Grid Tools toolbar
Trigger an Excel export directly from the Grid Tools toolbar without navigating away from the sheet or opening the File menu.
Respects active filters
The export includes only the rows visible in the current filtered view — hidden rows are excluded from the output file.
Select columns to include
Choose which columns to include in the export so the Excel file arrives ready to share without post-export column cleanup.
Standard .xlsx output
Exported files are standard Excel workbooks compatible with all Excel versions and tools that accept .xlsx format.
Screenshot: Grid Tools export to Excel button in toolbar
Export to Excel button in the Grid Tools toolbar
Screenshot: Column selection dialog before export
Choosing which columns to include in the Excel export
Screenshot: Downloaded Excel file with filtered rows only
Excel file with only filtered rows and selected columns

Frequently asked questions

Does Smartsheet's native export respect active filters?

No. Smartsheet's native Excel export includes all rows regardless of your active filter. Grid Tools exports only the rows visible in the current filtered view.

Can I choose which columns appear in the Excel export?

Yes. Grid Tools includes a column selector before exporting so you can include only the columns relevant to the recipient.

What Excel format does Grid Tools export?

Grid Tools exports a standard .xlsx file compatible with Microsoft Excel and any application that supports the Excel format.

Can I export a Smartsheet report to Excel?

Grid Tools' Excel export works on grid sheets. For reports, use Smartsheet's native report export or Grid Tools' report-specific features.

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