Cannot import Excel spreadsheet into Sharepoint Online

Question

We have Office365. I need to import various Excel spreadsheets into SharePoint Online as lists. I have full administrator rights to SharePoint Online.

I have attempted to use the Import Spreadsheet app in all three browsers (Chrome, Edge, and Firefox). Every time I try to import the spreadsheet using this app, I get the following error message, and the spreadsheet won’t upload: "This feature requires a browser that supports ActiveX controls." ActiveX controls are enabled on all three browsers. This doesn't seem to matter. 

Then I tried opening the site in IE 11 and trying again to use Import Spreadsheet, which is what the “Help” dialog  in SharePoint Online tells me to do, and I get this error: "This list cannot be imported because a Microsoft SharePoint Foundation-compatible spreadsheet application is not installed or is not compatible with your browser." I am using the latest version of Excel, but I have saved my data as a.csv, an .xls file, on OneDrive, and finally, stripped any "complex" formulas out of it and tried uploading it as plain data. I get the same error message each time, regardless of how I save or format my data. The "export to Excel" function on SharePoint Online works perfectly.

This should be a standard function of SharePoint Online, and should in no way be this difficult. This is a crucial activity, and I am extremely frustrated by how much time this has taken me so far.

Please tell me how I can upload my spreadsheets?

Answer 1

Hi Kate,

Please try the followings to check the result:

1.Open IE ->click gear on the upper right corner ->Internet Options ->Under security, select trusted sites -> click sites, make sure the followings sites are listed there (please replace contoso with your own tenant domain name):

https://contoso-files.sharepoint.com

https://contoso-myfiiles.sharepoint.com

https://contosso.sharepoint.com

2.Open IE ->Internet Opyions->Programs->Manage add-ons, scroll to SharePoint names, make sure they are all enabled. Then click OK and reatrt IE.

If the error persists, we want to confirm some information for investigation:

1.Generally the steps to import Excel spreadsheet to Excel can be the followings, which stage do you get the error?

a.On the site, go to Site Contents->Add an App->Import Spreadsheet.

b.Enter a list name and description, click Browse->Select the spreadsheet->Open->Import, it will open the spreadsheet in Excel.

c.Select the data range, then in the Import to Windows SharePoint Services list dialog box click Import, the spreadsheet will import into the list.

If you are not performing the steps above to import spreadsheet to SharePoint list, please clarify the steps and let us know when you get the error.

2.I notice you saved your data on your OneDrive, if you import a spreadsheet from your local computer, will it exhibits same error? Also, do you sync your OneDrive files to your local synced folder and then browse to synced folder to import the spreadsheet? if not, please clarify the steps how you import the data from OneDrive to SharePoint list.

3.Please share the spreadsheet with us via private message so that we can try to test it on our side.

4.A full screenshot of your Excel product information page from File tab->Account.

5.A screenshot of the error message.

Regards,

Joanne

Answer 2

There is no content to this reply. Can you please edit this to include your reply?

Answer 3

Hi Kate,

Sorry, I have modified my post, please check if the suggestion works on your side and let us know the outcome.

If not, please help provide the required information for further troubleshooting.

Regards,

Joanne

Answer 4

Hello,

I have taken all the steps you outlined above, and I still get the error: "This list cannot be imported because a Microsoft SharePoint Foundation-compatible spreadsheet application is not installed or is not compatible with your browser."

I saved the file to both OneDrive and my computer. I started with trying to import the file from my computer, but when that didn't work, I tried importing it from OneDrive. That still didn't work.

"1.Generally the steps to import Excel spreadsheet to Excel can be the followings, which stage do you get the error?"

I get the error when I click the Import button.

"a.On the site, go to Site Contents->Add an App->Import Spreadsheet.

b.Enter a list name and description, click Browse->Select the spreadsheet->Open->Import, it will open the spreadsheet in Excel.

c.Select the data range, then in the Import to Windows SharePoint Services list dialog box click Import, the spreadsheet will import into the list."

The above steps are moot, since I get the error upon clicking the Import button, and cannot go any further in the process.

I will contact you via private message. The spreadsheet I'm attempting to upload is a spreadsheet of test data -- I have at least two much larger spreadsheets to upload, but wanted to test this first before telling my teammate that it is possible to import a spreadsheet into SharePoint as a list. Would you like the actual spreadsheets we're attempting to upload, or just this spreadsheet of test data?

Answer 5

I am unable to send you a private message, as I get a warning saying I am not authorized to send one.