When distributing a sheet to be filled out by clients, it's far easier to manage and distribute as a PDF compared with an Excel document. However, converting an Excel file into a PDF that retains functional formulas is not straightforward, since few office suites are designed to offer such support. After digging deep, I discovered a reliable way through which one can convert Excel to PDF with formulas. In this article, I will take you through a step-by-step process on how to do that, relating some experiences and thoughts in the process.
Is it Possible to Convert Excel to PDF with Formulas?
Most of the office suites, even big ones like Microsoft Office and WPS Office, cannot convert Excel files into PDFs while retaining the formulas in an interactive manner. Sometimes this places much restriction on users who want to send spreadsheets containing formulas to clients or colleagues for working or filling out.
This is how Adobe Acrobat can help in converting Excel to PDF with formulas.
Here's how you do this step by step:
Step 1: Open Your Excel File in Excel: You can open the Excel file that contains all those formulas you want to convert.
Step 2: Save as PDF in Adobe Acrobat: In the Excel File menu, click on Save As, then choose PDF as the file type.
Step 3: Open the PDF in Adobe Acrobat: Open the newly created PDF in Adobe Acrobat.
Step 4: Use Form Tools in Adobe Acrobat: Use the Prepare Form tool in Adobe Acrobat, where you can add interactive fields and formulas. You can use these to create calculations fields that are set up for formulas in Excel, making the PDF dynamic.
Below is the comprehensive solution using Adobe Acrobat; however, here are some pros and cons of the software from my experience:
Pros:
Dynamic Functionality: The fact that Adobe Acrobat can retain and implement formulas in its PDFs makes it very helpful for creating fillable forms that perform calculations.
Professional Finish: It looks polished; hence, this is very suitable for professional and client-facing documents.
Cons:
Complexity: The process of conversion and setup of formula functionality in Adobe Acrobat is more complex compared to working directly from within Excel. This requires further steps and an acquaintance with the tools in Acrobat.
Price: Adobe Acrobat is not cheap to buy, hence being a limitation to those users who might deal with the transformation only every now and then.
Although Adobe Acrobat can facilitate Excel to PDF with formulas conversions, the process can be rather cumbersome and costly. For users whose requirements are simpler or do not require interactive formulae, other office suites like WPS Office offer simpler and absolutely free alternatives for standard PDF conversions.
Excel VS. PDF: Is PDF a Better Choice or not?
When deciding between Excel and PDF, it's essential to consider their respective functionalities and use cases.
Aspect | Excel | |
|---|---|---|
Functionality | Interactive and dynamic, enabling manipulation of data and real-time calculations. | Static format; very little interactivity. Calculations can be added with Adobe Acrobat, but this is cumbersome. |
Use Cases | Best to be used for continuous data evaluation, updates, and complicated formulae. | Best for final versions of documents and forms that are meant to be viewed without editing. |
File Size and Performance | Large, but often powerful performance with compatible software. | In general, smaller file size; formatting doesn't change between platforms. |
Security | Basic password protection, encryption: such features can be bypassed. | Only robust security features are taken seriously: password protection, digital signatures, and/or editing restrictions. |
Pricing | Free to use in WPS Office. | Basic functionality of PDFs is free in WPS Office; Adobe Acrobat capabilities for interactive PDFs: $14.99 per month. |
Recommendation:
Generally, Excel is better suited to dynamic data and calculation-heavy applications due to its interactive nature and user-friendliness. PDFs are best suited for final, secure, and static presentations. If you must go for more advanced functionalities in PDFs with the incorporation of interactive elements, one would be Adobe Acrobat, though with a lot more additional complexity and cost. Therefore, for most cases where interactivity is not crucial, it remains practical to stick with Excel or a free alternative such as WPS Office.
WPS Spreadsheets— Free and Easy to Use
WPS Office can be versatile and user-friendly while working with spreadsheets and their conversion to PDF format. Most of the office suites have limited functionality when converting Excel files into PDF with interactive formulas. WPS Office ensures ease in conversion without such hassle. You can create, edit, or convert your spreadsheets using WPS Spreadsheets without any hassle of complicated procedures.
Ease of Use: WPS Spreadsheets are intuitively designed for ease of use. You can manipulate the data, apply formulas, and make formatting adjustments with ease and speed. Convert your Excel files to PDF with ease for effective and reliable preservation of data integrity in a more shareable format.
Compatibility: WPS Office is very compatible with several file formats, including Excel. This means that when you change these over to PDFs, your spreadsheets look and work precisely as you created them.
Cost-Effective: WPS Office is free. It does contain very powerful spreadsheet tools, whereas it is highly contrasted with Adobe Acrobat as advanced features are to be paid for. In addition, all main features of WPS Spreadsheets are free. You can download WPS Office from the Official Website of WPS Office and may be looked for in the Apple Store or Google Play Store.
Installation and Download: Here it is step by step:
Step 1. Download WPS Office:
Go to Official Website: Go to the download page of WPS Office.
Download Installer: Click on the download to start downloading the installer file of WPS Office.
Step 2. Install WPS Office
Step 3. Open WPS Spreadsheets:
Open WPS Office: On installation, you will have WPS Office in your Start Menu. Open it, and you have WPS Spreadsheets opened.
Open WPS Spreadsheets: Open the WPS Spreadsheets from the main interface of the WPS Office by clicking the icon of Spreadsheets.
Step 4. Setup and Configuration
Log-in/Create Account: If you already have an account with WPS, you may log in. Otherwise, create a free account directly from the app itself.
Explore Features: Get used to the user interface and explore various features. Among many tools available to users in WPS Spreadsheets, similar to Microsoft Excel, are formulas, chart creation, and data analysis.
The following tutorial will walk you through how to download, install, and set up WPS Spreadsheets on your PC. WPS Spreadsheets is an easy, free solution to manage and convert your spreadsheet. It is ideal for anyone who doesn't need any complex or expensive solutions.
FAQs
Is it free to convert Excel to PDF using WPS?
Yes, Excel-to-PDF conversion with WPS Office is free. The WPS Office includes a word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation applications, and all are able to support converting an Excel file to PDF format without charge. Directly access it through the WPS Office application.
Can I convert PDF to Excel for free?
Yes, you can change PDF to Excel free of cost with the help of various tools like WPS Office. Even though WPS Office offers the facility of free conversion, other free converters are also available online. Some popular ones are:
Adobe Acrobat Online Tools: These are free, but carry limitations for converting PDFs online to Excel.
Smallpdf: Offers an easy, simple interface that replaces all the hassles related to conversion from PDF to Excel format.
Excel Converter by ILovePDF: Another easy-to-use tool for converting PDFs to Excel for free.
These tools can handle lightweight conversion tasks that could get by without paid subscriptions.
Summary
Conversion from Excel to PDF with active formulas isn't that easy; not many tools support it, like Adobe Acrobat, but it is expensive and a tedious process. For those users in whose case the requirement for interactive formula functionality within a PDF isn't necessary, WPS Office provides an easy, free alternative to turn Excel files into static PDFs without complicated procedures or additional costs.
