What is co-authoring in Excel? How does it work?

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Ngày cập nhật gần nhất: 15/4/2026

Co-authoring is a feature that enables users and colleagues to collaborate on a single Excel worksheet, with everyone seeing all changes in real-time across all devices running Excel for Office 365, for the web, or any mobile version.

What is co-authoring in Excel? How does it work?

Article Contents:
1. Sharing a workbook for co-authoring.
2. Opening a shared workbook.
3. Co-authoring in Excel.
4. Footnotes and Acknowledgments.

To collaborate in Excel, you need to install the latest version of Office 365.

Share your working file for collaboration.

To collaborate on a working file, first save it to OneDrive or SharePoint Online. If you want to share your file with others, click on 'Share' in the top right corner.

Additionally, if you haven't saved your working file to OneDrive or SharePoint, you'll be prompted when selecting Share.

When the Share menu opens, enter the email addresses of the people you want to share the working file with.

Next, choose the drop-down menu to decide whether the shared individuals can edit the file or just view the spreadsheet. Additionally, you can send a message if desired.

Click on the 'Share Online' button to send an email to the invited individuals.

The invited individuals can click on Open in the invitation email to open the shared workbook.

If you prefer not to share the working file via email, click on 'Get a Sharing Link' at the bottom of the Share options.

You can also view a list of individuals shared on the spreadsheet in the Share section.

How to open a shared working file.

When the shared individual opens the working file, it will open in Excel on the web. They can edit the file online in Excel, while also seeing who else is in the working sheet and the changes they've made.

If you wish to work in the Excel desktop version, you can click on 'Open in Desktop App'.

Collaboration in Excel.

For most Excel versions, including Office 365, web, and mobile, you'll find real-time collaboration options.

Each member participating in the working file will be assigned a different color to distinguish individual contributions. In fact, not all Excel versions support this feature. However, even if you can't see other authors on the working file, you'll still see the changes they've made.

To view real-time changes from all collaborators, you need to use Excel for Office 365 and enable the AutoSave feature. You can find it at the top left corner of the toolbar.

Annotations and Comments Section.

A great way to collaborate with others via the co-authoring feature without altering the values of each cell is by using comments. Comments will help you easily leave a note or even have a conversation in Excel before making changes.

- To add a comment, click on the cell you want to comment on, then click on 'Review' > 'New Comment'.
- Enter your comment and then click on the 'Post' button (green arrow icon).
- The comment will appear with an icon in the corner of the selected cell, in the same color as your co-author ID.
- All other authors can read your comment when they hover over that cell.
- To reply to a comment, simply click on the comment icon. When the window opens, you can enter your reply.

If you want to view all comments in the working file, click on 'Comments' at the top right corner. Then, the Comments pane opens, and you'll see all comments in dialog format. Each comment also includes a reference to the cell it appears in.

Dialog options in the working file through the Comments feature are considered extremely convenient, better than using external communication channels such as email or Skype ....

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the key features of co-authoring in Excel?

Co-authoring in Excel allows real-time collaboration on a single worksheet, enabling users to see changes made by others instantly. This feature is available across devices using Office 365, web, and mobile versions. Users can add comments and annotations, and each contributor is assigned a unique color for easy identification of changes.

How do you share a workbook for co-authoring in Excel?

To share a workbook for co-authoring, save the file to OneDrive or SharePoint Online. Click on 'Share' in the top right corner, enter the email addresses of collaborators, select their permissions, and send the invite. Alternatively, you can generate a sharing link for easier access.

What steps should you follow to open a shared workbook in Excel?

To open a shared workbook, click on the invitation link in your email, which will launch the file in Excel on the web. You can also choose to edit it in the Excel desktop app by selecting 'Open in Desktop App'. This allows real-time collaboration while viewing changes from other users.

How can you use comments for better collaboration in Excel?

You can enhance collaboration by adding comments in Excel. Select the cell, click 'Review', then 'New Comment' to enter your note. Other collaborators can view these comments by hovering over the cell, facilitating discussions without altering any cell values.

Is it necessary to have the latest version of Office 365 for co-authoring in Excel?

Yes, having the latest version of Office 365 is essential for utilizing the co-authoring feature in Excel. This ensures access to real-time collaboration tools and functionalities that are not available in older versions.

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