How to automatically save Microsoft Excel Files to OneDrive

Unlike Google Sheets, Microsoft Excel does not activate automatic saving by default. You can easily fix this as long as you have a Microsoft 365 subscription. We’ll show you how to save Microsoft automatically Excel Workbooks too OneDrive.

If you hit Ctrl + s (or Command + s on the Mac) every few seconds, this method ensures that you don’t have any unsaved works in your Excel Workbooks. It works by automatically saving your workbooks as OneDrive while you keep working on it.

We mentioned earlier that you need a Microsoft 365 subscription to do this, and that means you have 1TB of it OneDrive Cloud- Storage available, too. Go ahead and open the OneDrive app and follow the on-screen instructions to set it up. All you have to do is log in OneDrive, and Microsoft will take care of the rest.

Microsoft save automatically Excel Workbooks

Now is the time to open up Microsoft Excel and start a new workbook. Choose a file. “

Click on “New” in the left pane.

Click on New

Select “Blank Workbook” or another template from the list. This will open a new one Excel Workbook.

Click Blank Workbook


At the very top you will see an option called “AutoSave”. Click the switch next to AutoSave to change it to On.

Click the switch next to AutoSave

You will see a pop-up asking where you want to save your workbook. Click “OneDrive. “

click OneDrive

Enter the filename and click OK.

Click OK

That’s all you need to do to enable auto-save. From here on, Excel continues to save any changes you make to this workbook. You just have to turn on autosave every time you start working on a new one Excel Workbook and you don’t have to save it again. Note that you need an internet connection for autosave to work properly and for these workbooks to sync across devices.

A pop-up confirming that your workbooks will be saved automatically

What your function keys do in Microsoft Excel

Where to change Excel Workbooks are saved in OneDrive

By default, Microsoft Excel save yours Excel Workbooks in the Documents folder in OneDrive. But everyone else is there too Office Documents are saved, which can create a lot of clutter. For better organization, you should create separate folders for different projects, or at least one folder for each Office App. Here is what you need to do.

Open one of your workbooks in Microsoft Excel and click on “File”.

Click on File

Now select “Save a copy” in the left area.

Click Save a Copy

Choose “OneDrive. “

click OneDrive

There are two ways to create new folders. The first method is to click “More Options” and add folders from the Explorer window that appears.

Click More Options ...


The second method is to click the “New Folder” button and create a folder in OneDrive from within Microsoft Excel self.

Click on New Folder

Then click on the folder.

Select the folder you want to auto save to Excel Workbooks

Click on “Save”.

Click on

This brings you back to the Excel Workbook. You can click your file’s name at the top for a quick check that it’s saved in the correct folder.

Check the folder location for Microsoft Excel Workbooks

Now that you’ve seen how to auto-save Microsoft Excel Workbooks should also be the best Microsoft Excel Keyboard shortcuts.

All the best Microsoft Excel Keyboard shortcuts

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