Refresh Automatically

Question

I need to refresh data every day at a specific time automatically

Answer 1

Hi @Falcon Lopez, Basilio, 

I hope you’re having a great day. 

I understand you’d like your Excel workbook to refresh data automatically every day at a specific time (for example, 8:00 AM) without needing to manually open the file and click Refresh. 

If I misunderstood anything, or if you were referring to something else, please let me know so I can better assist you.  

A - What's happening 

In Excel, the built-in refresh settings are designed mainly for refreshing when the workbook is opened or refreshing every X minutes while the workbook is open (this option does not run when the workbook is closed or the computer is off).

So, if the workbook is closed, Excel does not provide a “true scheduled refresh at a specific clock time” by itself. 

B - Practical options

Since Excel does not currently offer a built‑in way to schedule a data refresh at an exact time when the workbook is closed, there are a couple of practical workarounds that can be considered, depending on the specific setup and requirements.

Option 1 - Power BI Scheduled refresh (recommended when applicable) 

If your data source and scenario allow, Power BI Service can handle the refresh on a schedule (for example, daily at 8:00 AM) without anyone opening Excel. This is generally the most scalable option, but it’s important to note that refreshes run in time slots Power BI aims to start within ~15 minutes of the scheduled time rather than exactly on the minute, and delays can occur under load.  

In addition, if your data source is on‑premises, a data gateway must be configured and available for the refresh to succeed, and scheduled refresh can be paused automatically if the dataset is inactive for an extended period. 

More info here: Power BI: Automatic Refreshes – Implementation Specialists

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Option 2 - Power Automate desktop (Unattended) or a dedicated VM 

If you need to stay on Excel Desktop, especially for complex Power Query or local/on‑prem data sources, unattended desktop automation is often the most reliable workaround. A dedicated machine or VM opens the workbook at the scheduled time, refreshes the data, saves, and closes it automatically.  

The trade‑offs are that this approach depends on having the correct licensing and prerequisites in place, and the machine must be in the right state on Windows 10/11, unattended runs can fail if any user session is active (even if locked), and signing into the machine while the automation is running can cause issues. 

In case you require more in-depth guidance or support for these steps, I’d recommend posting your query in the Microsoft Power Automate Community. This is a dedicated channel for Power Automate discussions. The reason I suggest posting a new topic there is that in the general Q&A Forum, resources and expertise on Power Automate are limited. In the Microsoft Power Platform Community Forum, you’ll find the most qualified group of respondents, and other partners who regularly read the forums can share their knowledge or learn from your interaction. 

C - Submit Feedback to Microsoft 

As a forum moderator, I hope you understand that I don’t have the ability to modify or escalate product issues directly. However, I strongly recommend submitting your feedback through the Excel · Community. This is the most effective way to ensure your voice reaches the product team and can be considered for future improvements.  

Once you've submitted your feedback, feel free to share the link here in the comments. I’ll be happy to upvote it to help bring more visibility.   

If you are unable to submit feedback from your side, please let me know and I will be happy to submit it on your behalf.

Additionally, since many other users have expressed similar concerns but may not know where to submit feedback, if my response has helped you better understand the situation and guided you toward a possible next step, please mark it as the "Accepted Answer". Your action will help pin this post to the top, making it easier for others in the community who are experiencing the same issue to find your feedback and support it.    

I hope this information is helpful. Should you have any further questions or need additional assistance, feel free to reach out.   

Thank you again for your time and for raising this important usability concern. 

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Answer 2

To refresh external data in an Excel workbook automatically every day at a specific time, configure the query connection properties:

1. Open the workbook and select a cell in the external data range (the table or range that is connected to your data source).
2. On the ribbon, go to Data > Queries & Connections.
3. In the Connections tab, right‑click the relevant query/connection and select Properties.
4. In the Usage tab, enable automatic refresh:
   • Check Refresh every and set an interval in minutes (for example, 1440 minutes for once per day).

Excel’s built‑in option uses a time interval (minutes) rather than a specific clock time, so choose an interval that aligns with when the workbook will be opened and when the refresh should occur. The workbook must be open (and, for some scenarios, Excel must be running) at the time the refresh is due.

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References:

• Refresh an external data connection in Excel