How to export data from Azure SQL data to Excel using ADF?

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How to export data from Azure SQL data to Excel using ADF?

SatyaJ 25

Hi - How to export data from Azure SQL data to Excel using ADF. Can someone please suggest optimized approach?

Chandra Boorla 12,760 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-05-10T09:00:16.42+00:00

@SatyaJ

Just checking in to see if the below suggestion helped. If this answers your query, do click Accept Answer and Yes for was this answer helpful. And, if you have any further query do let us know.

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Chandra Boorla 12,760 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-05-10T09:00:16.42+00:00

@SatyaJ

Just checking in to see if the below suggestion helped. If this answers your query, do click Accept Answer and Yes for was this answer helpful. And, if you have any further query do let us know.

Answer 1

Chandra Boorla 12,760 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

@Satya Nataraj Jakkamsetty

It looks like you want to export data from Azure SQL Database to Excel using Azure Data Factory (ADF). While ADF doesn’t directly support exporting to Excel format (.xlsx), you can achieve this with an optimized approach using CSV format, which Excel can easily open.

User's image

For additional information, please refer: Excel file format in Azure Data Factory and Azure Synapse Analytics

Optimized Approach - Export Data as CSV (Excel-Compatible)

Export Data as CSV (Excel-Compatible)

Create a new pipeline in ADF.
Add a Copy Data activity.
Set the source as your Azure SQL Database.
For the sink, choose Delimited Text (CSV) format.
Configure the file extension as .csv, which can be easily opened in Excel.

Automate Excel Conversion (Optional)

If you need a true Excel file (.xlsx), you can:

Use an Azure Function or Azure Logic App to convert the CSV to an Excel file automatically.
Alternatively, use a Databricks Notebook (Python with Pandas) for conversion.

For more details, please refer: Convert CSV to EXCEL in Azure Blob Storage

I hope this information helps. Please do let us know if you have any further queries.

If this answers your query, do click Accept Answer and Yes for was this answer helpful. And, if you have any further query do let us know.

Thank you.

SatyaJ 25 Reputation points

2025-05-08T21:02:26.0966667+00:00

Do ADF supports Source as .xlsb files? If it supports How to do?

Can you please provide Microsoft fabric documentation to load data from Azure SQL database to Excel?
Chandra Boorla 12,760 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-05-08T21:21:25.52+00:00

@Satya Nataraj Jakkamsetty , @SatyaJ

Do ADF supports Source as .xlsb files? If it supports How to do?

Yes, Azure Data Factory (ADF) supports using .xlsx (Excel) files as a source.

Note - Ensure Your Excel File is Stored in Azure - The .xlsx file should be in Azure Blob Storage or Azure Data Lake Storage (ADLS).

Can you please provide Microsoft fabric documentation to load data from Azure SQL database to Excel?

MS Fabric is currently not supported in the Q&A forums, the supported products are listed over here Supported products on MS Q&A (more to be added later on).

You can ask the experts in the dedicated MS Fabric community forum.

Can you please open as a new thread in MS Fabric community: https://community.fabric.microsoft.com/t5/General-Discussion/bd-p/ac_generaldiscussion

I hope this information helps.

Thank you.
SatyaJ 25 Reputation points

2025-05-08T21:30:54.6966667+00:00

Do ADF supports excel binary format .XLSB extension?
SatyaJ 25 Reputation points

2025-05-08T21:34:58.0666667+00:00

REF binary format link: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/openspecs/office_file_formats/ms-xlsb/acc8aa92-1f02-4167-99f5-84f9f676b95a
Chandra Boorla 12,760 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-05-09T07:48:11.4766667+00:00
@SatyaJ

Apologies for the confusion in my previous response. I initially thought you were asking about the .xlsx format instead of .xlsb (Excel Binary Workbook).

Do ADF supports excel binary format .XLSB extension?

No, Azure Data Factory (ADF) does NOT support Excel binary format (.xlsb) as a source or sink directly.

Why .XLSB is Not Supported in ADF - ADF supports .xlsx (Excel) and .xls (Excel 97-2003) formats, but .xlsb (Excel Binary Workbook) is not directly supported because of its binary format, which cannot be directly parsed by ADF’s Excel connector.

Workaround - How to Work with .XLSB Files in ADF:

If you need to work with .xlsb files in ADF, you have two main options:

Approach 1 - Convert .XLSB to .XLSX (Recommended)

Use an Azure Function, Azure Logic App, or Databricks Notebook (Python with Pandas) to automatically convert the .xlsb file to .xlsx format.

Use the converted .xlsx file in ADF as a source.

Approach 2 - Process .XLSB with Azure Databricks:

If direct conversion is not possible, use Azure Databricks with Python and the pyxlsb library to read the .xlsb file and transform it into a format ADF can work with (CSV, Parquet, JSON).

You can set up an ADF pipeline to trigger this Databricks process.

I hope this information helps.
Chandra Boorla 12,760 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-05-12T16:10:12.31+00:00

@Chandra Boorla

Following up to see if the above suggestion was helpful. If this answers your query, do click Accept Answer and Yes for was this answer helpful. And, if you have any further query do let us know.
SatyaJ 25 Reputation points

2025-05-12T17:18:13.42+00:00

Thanks Chandra

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How to export data from Azure SQL data to Excel using ADF?

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