Grid: a free Excel alternative in your browser
Excel costs US$99.99 a year. Grid is a free spreadsheet for budgets, data, formulas, pivot tables and charts. It runs in a browser tab on your own device, with nothing to install.
Excel and Grid, side by side
Microsoft’s price is from its US page on 14 November 2026.
| Excel | Grid in Madosuite | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | US$99.99 a year (or US$9.99 a month) for Microsoft 365 Personal | Free |
| Free option | Excel for the web with a Microsoft account, files saved in OneDrive | Everything, always |
| Where it runs | Installed app, or the web with files in OneDrive | A browser tab, on your own device |
| Account | A Microsoft account | Not needed |
| Your files | On your computer, or in OneDrive for the web version | In the browser on your device; not uploaded to us |
| Maturity | Mature, sold for years | Alpha, the core workflow works end to end |
What you can do in Grid today
For budgets, data, formulas, pivot tables and charts. From Grid’s own documentation, version 0.14.2.
Works now
- 500+ worksheet functions, plus LET, LAMBDA, MAP, REDUCE and BYROW
- Dynamic arrays that spill
- Pivot tables saved to and read from XLSX
- Seventeen chart types with a Format pane
- Sort, AutoFilter, Flash Fill and data validation
- Conditional formatting, colour scales and sparklines
- Structured table references
- Page Break Preview and PDF export
Before you switch
Grid is alpha: formatting from old .xls files does not come in, and very large workbooks are next on its list.
Not in Grid yet
- Formatting and objects from old .xls files
- Formulas from XLSB and ODS (their saved values come in)
- Very large workbooks and multi-threaded recalculation
Switching from Excel
Open Madosuite
In your browser. The Grid app starts on your own device; nothing is installed.
Bring your files
Upload your .xlsx files in Files. They stay in the browser on this device.
Keep the format
Grid saves XLSX, CSV, TSV, so a file can go back to someone who still uses Excel.
Excel alternative questions
Is there a free alternative to Excel?
Grid in Madosuite is free and runs in a browser tab. It is alpha, so check the list of what is missing.
Can I open .xlsx files without Excel?
Yes. Grid in Madosuite opens .xlsx and saves it back. Grid keeps pivot tables in .xlsx. Old .xls files open with values and formulas, without formatting.
What can’t Grid do yet?
Grid is alpha: formatting from old .xls files does not come in, and very large workbooks are next on its list.
How much does Excel cost?
US$99.99 a year (or US$9.99 a month) for Microsoft 365 Personal, from Microsoft’s US page on 14 November 2026. Free option: Excel for the web with a Microsoft account, files saved in OneDrive. Prices change; check Microsoft’s page.
Where are my files kept?
In the browser on your device, inside Madosuite’s own Linux machine, in its home folder. Your files are not uploaded to us. Clearing the site’s data in your browser deletes them, so download what you want to keep.
Do I need an account?
No. Sign in with a 0cloud account only if you want one; without it, your work stays in this browser on this device.