Direct answer
Can I compare spreadsheets saved in different file formats?
Diff Anything compares stored workbook values by sheet and cell coordinate across Excel (XLS, XLSX, XLSM, XLSB, and their templates), OpenDocument (ODS), and Apple Numbers. The two workbooks can use different formats, so an XLSX can be compared directly with ODS or Numbers without converting either file first. A CSV or TSV export can also be compared with one sheet of a workbook.
Supported formats
Use a shared value model across spreadsheet containers.
Open any two XLS/XLA, XLSX/XLSM/XLAM, XLSB, ODS, or Apple Numbers workbooks. The extensions do not need to match.
Diff Anything normalizes sheets and populated cell coordinates, then compares the stored values rather than the unrelated internals of each file container.
Open a CSV or TSV file beside a workbook to check an export against the sheet it came from. The first sheet is used by default; choose another under Compare with sheet, and a note names the sheet that was compared.
- Excel: XLS, XLA, XLT, XLSX, XLSM, XLTX, XLTM, XLAM, and XLSB
- OpenDocument: ODS and OTS
- Apple: Numbers
- CSV or TSV against one sheet of a workbook
Sheet-aware review
Inspect changed cells in two aligned grids.
Choose a sheet, scan row numbers and column letters, and select a changed cell to connect its coordinate with the Differences pane.
Populated rows and columns are virtualized so large ranges remain navigable instead of rendering the entire workbook at once.
Exact boundary
Treat a clean result as value equivalence—not workbook identity.
Spreadsheet comparison uses stored cell values. Formulas, formatting, charts, macros, and workbook layout are not compared.
Use the original spreadsheet applications when you need to validate calculation logic, styles, charts, print setup, VBA, or editing behavior. A formula and a literal value may compare as equal when their stored results are equal.
Best for
Where this workflow fits.
- Checking data after moving a workbook between Excel, LibreOffice, and Apple Numbers
- Finding changed cells across every sheet of a workbook
- Reviewing private spreadsheet data without uploading it
No accounts, cloud comparison service, analytics, or telemetry.
Relevant capabilities
What Diff Anything brings to the job.
Practical workflow
From setup to a reviewed result.
Choose sources
Open files or folders, paste content, or use Pro to load a saved profile with known options.
Select a mode
Use automatic detection or explicitly choose text, structured, cross-format spreadsheet, folder, archive, document, image, binary, or API comparison. In code comparisons, switch between Smart Diff and conventional Line Diff without changing sources.
Review and resolve
Navigate stable differences, apply supported changes, or use Pro to resolve three-way conflicts or approve a folder synchronization plan without losing source context.
Save or automate
Use Pro to export a report or retain a profile, invoke the CLI, or wire the comparison into Git and CI.
Useful in practice
Direct answers
Questions about compare spreadsheets different formats.
Can I compare spreadsheets saved in different file formats?
Diff Anything compares stored workbook values by sheet and cell coordinate across Excel (XLS, XLSX, XLSM, XLSB, and their templates), OpenDocument (ODS), and Apple Numbers. The two workbooks can use different formats, so an XLSX can be compared directly with ODS or Numbers without converting either file first. A CSV or TSV export can also be compared with one sheet of a workbook.
Can Diff Anything compare XLSX with ODS or Apple Numbers?
Yes. Supported workbook formats share the same sheet-and-cell value model, so mixed-format pairs such as XLSX with ODS or Numbers can be compared directly.
Can I compare a CSV file with an Excel workbook?
Yes. Open the CSV or TSV file on one side and the workbook on the other. They are compared by cell values with the workbook's first sheet, or the sheet you choose under Compare with sheet. Values are compared as stored text, so 20 and 20.0 count as different.
Are formulas and spreadsheet formatting compared?
No. Spreadsheet mode compares stored cell values. Formulas, formatting, charts, macros, and workbook layout are outside this comparison.
Do spreadsheet files leave the computer?
No. Spreadsheet extraction and comparison run locally, with no Diff Anything account, cloud comparison service, analytics, or telemetry.
Go deeper
Review cross-format spreadsheet values, release trees, documents, and visual assets with purpose-built navigation, safety checks, and rollback.
Read Compare folders, spreadsheets, documents, and imagesFree & Pro: what’s included
Available on the Mac App Store and Microsoft Store. Free desktop use lets you try every comparison engine for files up to 5 MiB per side and 10 new comparison sessions per local day; collection previews show the first 100 items and PDF previews show the first 3 pages. The free CLI supports text and JSON. A one-time Pro purchase removes the preview and session limits and unlocks larger sources within technical limits, saved profiles and history, report export, three-way merge, folder synchronization, batch manifests, trusted preprocessors, and every CLI mode.