How To Import Data From Website Into Excel

Importing Data from Websites into Excel

Using Power Query

For those familiar with Excel, using Power Query is an efficient method to import web data. It allows users to easily pull information from various web pages, like a Wikipedia FIFA World Cup standings page. Data is imported directly into Excel, formatted as a table for convenience. The process is simplified through selecting 'Query Refresh' to keep your data up-to-date.

Excel Web Queries and VBA

Excel's built-in Web Query feature provides a straightforward way to retrieve web data organized in tables. This option is less technical and ideal for non-programmers. Alternatively, Excel VBA is a powerful option for scraping complex data but requires macro programming skills. Choose the appropriate method based on your technical expertise and project requirements.

Web Scraping Tools

Web scraping tools like Octoparse simplify the data extraction process, allowing you to pull data from websites to Excel without any coding knowledge. For scalable and automated web scraping, Bright Data's Web Scraper API is recommended, as it can handle large-scale operations and outputs data directly in Excel format.

Refreshing Imported Data

With Power Query, keeping your Excel dataset up to date is convenient. Simply select 'Query Refresh' to update your information to the latest available from your selected web sources.

Converting Data into Insights

Once data is imported into Excel, utilize Excel's data analysis tools, such as pivot tables and regression models, to transform raw data into actionable insights.

Outsource Web Scraping

If you lack the time or technical skills for web scraping, consider hiring a proficient web scraping team. They provide ready-to-analyze data in Excel format, catered to your business needs.

Excel vs Sourcetable: Streamlining Data Analysis

Sourcetable, a modern spreadsheet application, provides robust data collection from over 100 third-party integrations, unlike Excel which requires additional tools for similar connectivity. Sourcetable offers an AI copilot for efficient formula creation and template management, streamlining the data manipulation process through conversation, which is not native in Excel. This makes Sourcetable an exceptional solution for those seeking simplicity in advanced data tasks.

Excel, a traditional spreadsheet tool by Microsoft, is known for extensive functions, with a vast library exceeding 10,000 options. However, it lacks native data integration and real-time collaboration, requiring OneDrive for such features. Sourcetable outperforms Excel in interactive reporting, real-time data sync from multiple services, and facilitating collaboration without coding knowledge.

Strategically adopting Sourcetable can enhance business intelligence tasks for growth teams and business operations, offering a centralized, no-code environment for data analysis. With its competitive pricing plans, Sourcetable invites businesses to embrace an intuitive interface for creating live dashboards, offering a 14-day free trial to explore its expansive capabilities.

Comparatively, Excel demands expertise for complex data management, while Sourcetable simplifies this with its contemporary interface and AI assistance. Integrated seamlessly with multiple data services, Sourcetable is designed to provide live, actionable insights, making it the preferable alternative for modern data management over the conventional, versatile yet complex Excel platform.