Create and explore data types in Excel

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Summary

This sample builds an Excel add-in that can create and explore data types in your workbooks. Data types enable add-in developers to organize complex data structures as objects, such as formatted number values, web images, and entities. See Overview of data types in Excel add-ins to learn more about data types.

Features

This sample builds and then sideloads a data types explorer add-in that allows you to create and edit data types in an Excel workbook. Once the add-in is sideloaded, you can use it to explore entity, web image, formatted number, string, double, and boolean data types.

Screenshot showing the data types explorer task pane and a formatted number entity in the Excel grid.

In particular, this add-in contains an entity data type builder that you can use to create and explore entity cards. Entity cards extend the potential of Excel add-ins beyond a 2-dimensional grid. To learn more about entity cards, see Use cards with entity value data types.

Screenshot showing the data types explorer task pane, with the entity builder displayed, and an entity card open over the Excel grid.

Applies to

  • Excel on Windows
  • Excel on Mac
  • Excel on the web

Prerequisites

  • Excel on Windows with a minimum build of 16.0.14626.10000, or Excel on Mac with a minimum build of 16.55.21102600, or Excel on the web.
  • Node.js version 16 or greater.
  • npm version 8 or greater.

Solution

Solution Author(s)
Create and explore data types in Excel workbooks Microsoft

Version history

Version Date Comments
1.0 9-7-2022 Initial release
1.1 10-12-2022 Promote from Preview to GA

Run the sample

Take the following steps to run this sample and set up the data types explorer add-in.

  1. Clone or download this repo.
  2. Go to the Samples/excel-data-types-explorer folder via the command line.
  3. Run npm install to set up the add-in dependencies.
  4. Run npm start. This command opens Excel, sideloads the add-in in Excel, and opens the task pane. If the task pane doesn't open automatically, select Show Taskpane in the Excel ribbon.
  5. Follow the directions in the task pane to build and explore data types.

Note: To sideload this add-in sample in Excel on the web, see Sideload Office Add-ins to Office on the web.

See also

An unmaintained version of this data types explorer tool is also available as an Excel Script Lab sample. To learn more about Script Lab, see Explore Office JavaScript API using Script Lab.

Questions and feedback

  • Did you experience any problems with the sample? Create an issue and we'll help you out.
  • We'd love to get your feedback about this sample. Go to our Office samples survey to give feedback and suggest improvements.
  • For general questions about developing Office Add-ins, go to Microsoft Q&A using the office-js-dev tag.

Copyright (c) 2022 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

This project has adopted the Microsoft Open Source Code of Conduct. For more information, see the Code of Conduct FAQ or contact opencode@microsoft.com with any additional questions or comments.