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XLSX (Excel files) Make integrationAutomate XLSX (Excel files) with Make.

Need a clean spreadsheet out of data that lives in other apps? The XLSX (Excel files) Make integration has 3 modules that gather items into one Excel file. This guide is for ops and sales teams, and it walks you through a first working scenario.

Try the XLSX (Excel files) integration on MakeSee the 3 modules

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What you can automate

What can the XLSX (Excel files) Make integration do for you?

It turns a batch of items into a single Excel file inside Make. A scenario (the automation you build in Make) pulls records from another app, and an XLSX module packs them into one file you can send or store. You never open Excel, and no account is needed on the XLSX side.

A contact export for the sales team. A CRM module returns contacts, each one arriving as a bundle (one item passed from one module to the next). Create Excel merges those bundles and hands back one XLSX file, ready to attach to an email.

A file whose columns never move. Accounting often expects the same headers in the same order. Create Excel (advanced) relies on a Data structure, so you decide the columns once and every new file follows them.

A head start from Make's own example. The doc lists an entry named Example - Generate an XLSX File from Google Contacts. Read it before building your own contact export.

Know the limits before you start. None of the 3 modules watches or reads a file, so something else has to start the scenario. There is no Make an API Call module either. On the Free plan, files stay under 5 MB. If you are weighing tools, the n8n vs Make comparison sets them side by side, Make pricing covers the plans, and Make training helps you go further.

Connect

How do you set up XLSX (Excel files) in Make?

  1. 01

    Add the XLSX module

    In your scenario, click the + on the right of the module that brings the data, type XLSX in the search bar and pick Create Excel or its advanced version.

  2. 02

    Skip the connection screen

    Most apps ask you to click Create a connection to link your account to Make. This one does not: the doc states that XLSX works without any connection, so there is no login, key or authorization window.

  3. 03

    Fill the fields and map

    Fill the module fields and map the data coming from the previous module. Make shows what that module returned, so you click the values you want in the file instead of typing them.

First scenario

Your first scenario with XLSX (Excel files)

GoalWhen the scenario runs, Make collects records from another app and returns them as one XLSX file.

  1. 01

    Create the scenario

    Open the Scenarios page, create a new scenario and click the + to place the first module. XLSX cannot start a flow, so this first module comes from the app that holds your data.

  2. 02

    Pick the data source

    Search that app by name, choose the module that returns your records, click Create a connection for that app and fill its fields. Each record will travel as a separate bundle.

  3. 03

    Add Create Excel

    Click the + on the right of the source module, search XLSX and add Create Excel. No connection here: map the values from the source module into its fields.

  4. 04

    Test with Run once

    Click Run once. The scenario runs one time and you can read the bundles each module received, including the single file that Create Excel produced from all the records.

  5. 05

    Schedule and switch on

    Open the clock on the first module. A new scenario runs every 15 minutes by default, and the Free plan cannot go below that. Adjust it, then switch the scenario on.

Modules

The 3 XLSX (Excel files) modules

XLSX (Excel files) gives you 3 modules. For each one: what it does for you, when to reach for it, and what to watch out for.

XLSX (Excel files)1

Create Excel

Aggregator

In Make“Merges selected items and returns them in the XLSX format.”

You get one XLSX file built from many items at once. As an aggregator, it gathers the bundles sent by earlier modules into a single spreadsheet instead of one file per item.

When to use it
a quick export of contacts, orders or form answers where the column layout does not matter much.
Watch out
every item you merge adds to the file, and the Free plan keeps files under 5 MB.
XLSX (Excel files)2

Create Excel (advanced)

Aggregator

In Make“Merges selected items and returns them in the XLSX format. Employs Data structure to define columns in the resulting XLSX file.”

Here the columns are yours to decide. This aggregator also merges items into one XLSX file, but it uses a Data structure to set which columns the file contains and in what order.

When to use it
a report that someone reopens and filters, where a stable header row saves them from fixing columns by hand.
Watch out
define the Data structure before mapping, otherwise the file has nothing to follow.
XLSX (Excel files)3

Example - Generate an XLSX File from Google Contacts

ActionIn the docs only

This entry gives you a reference point rather than a new feature. The Make doc lists it under the XLSX app, and its title describes the flow: contacts from Google Contacts turned into an XLSX file.

When to use it
before your first export, to see how a contact source and an XLSX module fit together.
Watch out
the doc gives it no description, so check that entry in the Make doc before you rely on it.
Need help

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FAQ

XLSX (Excel files) and Make: common questions

01Is the XLSX (Excel files) Make integration free?
Yes. XLSX is a standard app, so it works on the Free plan, like the 3,000+ standard apps Make offers. The Free plan still has limits: 2 active scenarios, a scheduled run at most every 15 minutes, 5 minutes of execution per run, files up to 5 MB and 512 MB of data transfer. Each module that runs on a bundle counts as an operation (one execution of one module), and operations are what Make counts on your plan. Paid plans lift the interval to 1 minute and allow 40 minutes of execution.
02What do you need to use XLSX (Excel files) in Make?
You need a Make account and a scenario that brings data. The doc states that no connection is required for the XLSX app, so you will not see a login page or paste any key. You do need a module from another app that returns the records you want in the file, since XLSX only assembles what it receives. If that source app needs a connection, you create it on the source module, not on the XLSX one. Map its values into Create Excel and you are set.
03Can an XLSX (Excel files) scenario start in real time?
Not on its own. XLSX has no trigger, so it never starts a scenario. Two options remain. The first is scheduling: Make runs the scenario at the interval set on the first module, every 15 minutes by default. The second is an instant trigger from another app, which calls Make through a webhook as soon as something happens there, and then the XLSX module builds the file right after. The speed depends on that first module, not on XLSX.
04What if the XLSX module you need is missing?
It depends on what is missing. The app has 3 modules, all focused on producing a file, and no Make an API Call module to fill gaps. If you need a precise column order, switch to Create Excel (advanced) and its Data structure. If you need to read or watch an existing spreadsheet, XLSX cannot do it, so look at another app that handles spreadsheets. If files get too large on the Free plan, remember the 5 MB cap. The team can also help you design the flow.
05Should you use Make or n8n to generate XLSX files?
It depends on where the rest of your automations already run. On Make, the XLSX app needs no connection and offers a basic and an advanced module, which covers most exports. n8n often has a node for the same kind of app, so check what it offers before choosing. Pick the tool your team already maintains, since the source data and the next steps live there too. The n8n vs Make comparison linked in the section above goes through both tools side by side.
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