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How to use Microsoft Excel with Copilot Studio

You want Microsoft Excel inside Copilot Studio so it can audit workbook data quality, summarize operational spreadsheets, review spreadsheet comments, and update and save a workbook — without you copy-pasting between tabs. Here is the whole setup, once.

Create your Microsoft Excel gateway

The gateway is the thing Copilot Studio connects to, and it is where you decide which Microsoft Excel tools an agent may use. You create it once and every client reuses it.

  1. Create an Arcade account

    Sign up and open the dashboard. The free tier is enough to follow this through.

  2. Create an MCP Gateway and select your Microsoft Excel tools

    In the dashboard, create a gateway and pick the Microsoft Excel tools you want to expose. The gateway is what your client connects to, and it is where tool access is decided.

  3. Copy your gateway URL

    Every client below needs it.

    https://api.arcade.dev/mcp/<YOUR-GATEWAY-SLUG>

Create a Microsoft Excel gateway Opens the gateway builder in your Arcade dashboard.

Connect the gateway to Copilot Studio

Heads up

Needs a Microsoft 365 subscription with access to Copilot Studio, plus an Arcade API key.

  1. Add an MCP tool to your agent

    In Copilot Studio, open your agent → Tools → Add a tool → Model Context Protocol → New tool.

  2. Point it at your gateway

    Give the server a name and description, put your gateway URL in Server URL, set Authentication to OAuth 2.0 and Type to Dynamic discovery.

  3. Authorize and try it out

    Saving redirects you to Arcade to approve access. Then start a conversation and use your Microsoft Excel tools — Arcade authorizes each service just in time.

Full Copilot Studio guide in the docs steps verified 2026-08-13

Try these Excel prompts

Copilot Studio can now act on your Microsoft Excel account. Click a prompt to copy it.

Use Contextual Access policies to limit an agent to reading workbook data or require approval before it changes a cell, deletes a worksheet, or uploads a complete workbook.

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