Free, peer-reviewed, and legally open Excel textbooks authored by university educators under Creative Commons and open licenses. Download DRM-free PDFs, read on Pressbooks/LibreTexts, or inspect interactive simulation templates.
Quick Recommendation
The Starter Dilemma: Which Book Should You Pick?
Two flagship open textbooks stand out depending on your platform and Excel version.
Beginning Excel 2019
Best for Cross-Platform Beginners
Authored by community college professors with side-by-side Windows & Mac screenshots. Gentle progression from cell addresses to formulas, charts, and multi-sheet workbooks.
Fresh 2025 textbook introducing dynamic arrays, modern lookup functions, PivotTables, and real-world 'what-if' decision modeling for personal budgeting and business.
Comprehensive college-level fundamentals with step-by-step Windows & Mac screenshots.
Authors & Publisher:Noreen Brown, Barbara Lave, Julie Romey, Mary Schatz, Diane Shingledecker (Open Oregon Educational Resources / Open Textbook Library)
Formats:
PDFEPUBOnline
Written for introductory community college spreadsheet courses, this book guides absolute beginners through spreadsheet design, data entry, basic math computations, lookup functions (VLOOKUP, IF), charting, and multi-sheet management.
Dual-platform instructions for both Windows and Mac Excel
A core 2025 open textbook focusing on practical decision-making. Covers modern dynamic array formulas (such as FILTER and SORT), PivotTables, charts, and 'what-if' scenarios applied to home mortgages, inventory management, and business budgets.
Dedicated coverage of modern Dynamic Array functions and new formula paradigms
Gateway to Business Analytics with Microsoft Excel®
An applied guide to optimization with Solver, Monte Carlo simulations, and VBA automation.
Authors & Publisher:Jeffrey E. Carter (Open Textbook Library)
Formats:
PDFOnline
Designed for undergraduate business analytics courses. Uses Microsoft Excel to explore optimization via Solver, Monte Carlo simulation, economic modeling (growth, unemployment, yield curves), and provides an accessible introduction to VBA macros.
Linear & non-linear optimization using the Excel Solver add-in
Hands-on Monte Carlo risk simulation models
Friendly introduction to automating repetitive reporting with Excel VBA
Introductory Business Statistics with Interactive Spreadsheets
Learn statistical concepts with downloadable, unlocked interactive Excel simulation spreadsheets.
Authors & Publisher:Mohammad Mahbobi (Thompson Rivers University) (BCcampus Open Education)
Formats:
PDFEPUBOnlineXLSX
A Canadian edition adaptation of Thomas K. Tiemann's classic work. Covers descriptive statistics, normal and t-distributions, hypothesis testing, ANOVA, and linear regression. Every chapter includes unlocked, interactive Excel templates so you can test inputs and inspect real formula outcomes.
Complete set of unlocked interactive .xlsx templates available for free download
Hands-on models for t-tests, Chi-square, ANOVA, and simple/multiple regression
Ideal for business analytics students bridging theory and spreadsheet calculation
Chapters 9 through 12 cover spreadsheet essentials, advanced formulas, statistical data analysis, and accounting applications. Features clear multi-step workflows for both Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets.
Authored by academic experts and peer-reviewed by college faculty
Side-by-side workflow considerations for both Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets
High-resolution diagrams and professional accounting / reporting use cases
Data Wrangling & Validation for Open Data with Spreadsheets
Transform messy spreadsheets into clean, machine-readable datasets and schema-validated CSV files.
Authors & Publisher:Gavin Chait (Whythawk) (Whythawk / GitHub Open Education)
Formats:
GitHubOnline
A pragmatic open-source guide for data practitioners. Covers identifying data anomalies, structuring machine-readable tabular formats, designing JSON data schemas, and applying validation workflows inside spreadsheet editors.
Dual-licensed under Creative Commons BY-SA and MIT
Step-by-step methods to reshape messy tables into machine-readable CSVs
Real training datasets and schema validation exercises
A phenomenal open-source learning project that implements modern deep learning models entirely within Excel spreadsheets. Explore Softmax, Multi-Layer Perceptrons, Backpropagation, Self-Attention, Transformers, and modern architectures with zero external code.
100% pure spreadsheet formulas — no Python, no macros, no black-box APIs
Are these Excel books really 100% free and open-source?
Yes. All textbooks featured here are published under open copyright licenses such as Creative Commons (CC BY, CC BY-NC-SA) or MIT. They are funded and hosted by academic institutions (like Open Textbook Library, Open Oregon, and BCcampus) for free global education.
Can I download these books as PDF for offline reading?
Yes. Most of these textbooks provide direct DRM-free PDF downloads through their official university repositories, which you can read on your computer, iPad, or Kindle without registering an account.
Which book should an absolute beginner choose?
Start with 'Beginning Excel 2019' for a clear, gentle step-by-step introduction with both Windows and Mac instructions. If you have Microsoft 365, choose 'Learning How to Use Microsoft Excel 365' to learn modern dynamic array formulas.
Can educators and trainers use these books in courses?
Yes! Because they are licensed under Creative Commons, teachers and trainers can legally assign them to students, print physical copies, or adapt chapters to fit specific course syllabi without paying royalties.
How do I turn book knowledge into real spreadsheet muscle memory?
Reading provides conceptual understanding, but real retention comes from typing formulas yourself. We recommend pairing your reading with SheetDo's interactive practice hall to test syntax with instant grading.