By 
In this “Excel Online business vs OneDrive Connector” article, we will learn about the difference between the Excel Online Business and OneDrive Connector in Power Automate Flow. When we work with Power Automate flow, we see that there are three types of Excel-related connectors available for Excel operation. In this case, if we don’t know the proper usages of these connectors, it will be very confusing which connectors to select. Each of these three Excel connectors has its own purpose and usage. In this article, let’s understand the usage of these three Excel connectors.
Power Automate Excel Online Business vs OneDrive connector vs Excel
When working with Excel in Microsoft Flow, we can find that there are 3 connectors available with respect to Excel operations in Power Automate.
- Excel
- Excel Online (Business)
- Excel Online (OneDrive)
Note:
- The first one (Excel) connector is deprecated by Microsoft, so you may not see the Excel connector in your Power Platform environment; however, you must see the other two Excel connectors, Excel Online (Business) and Excel Online (OneDrive).
Let’s understand these connectors one by one.
Excel
Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet developed by Microsoft. Connect to your Microsoft Excel spreadsheets in your file services like OneDrive for Business, OneDrive, Dropbox, Box, etc. You can perform various actions, such as create, update, get, and delete, on rows in a table. This connector is now being deprecated by Microsoft. For more details, refer to this Microsoft article: Power Automate Excel [DEPRECATED]
Excel Online (Business)
The Excel Online Business connector is specifically designed to integrate with Excel spreadsheets stored in Microsoft’s cloud-based platform. This connector allows users to interact with Excel workbooks directly from Power Automate, enabling the automation of various tasks related to data manipulation, analysis, and reporting. Let’s know the definition from Microsoft:
“Excel Online (Business) connector lets you work with Excel files in document libraries supported by Microsoft Graph (OneDrive for Business, SharePoint Sites, and Office 365 Groups).”
For more details about the Excel Online (Business) connector in Power Automate, refer to this Microsoft article: Excel Online (Business) in Power Automate
Excel Online (OneDrive)
The OneDrive connector in Power Automate is designed to interact with files and folders stored in OneDrive, Microsoft’s cloud storage service. This connector facilitates the automation of tasks related to file management, sharing, and collaboration. Let’s know the definition from Microsoft:
“Excel Online (OneDrive) connection provider lets you work with Excel files stored in OneDrive. This connection provider only supports personal (MSA) accounts.”
For more details about the Excel Online (OneDrive) connector in Power Automate, refer to this Microsoft article: Excel Online (OneDrive) connector in Power Automate
While you are exploring the various Excel connectors in Microsoft OneDrive and SharePoint Online, you may also read the below article about security in Microsoft OneDrive:
What is the Difference Between Excel Online Business and OneDrive Connector in Power Automate?
As we learned from the above discussion, the Excel Online (OneDrive) connection provider lets you work with Excel files stored in OneDrive, and on the other hand, the Excel Online (Business) connector lets you work with Excel files in document libraries supported by Microsoft Graph (OneDrive for Business, SharePoint Sites, and Office 365 Groups). So, both the connectors have their own needs and purposes while working with Excel data, whether it is stored in your OneDrive or in the SharePoint Online document library.
The decision on which connector we should use will be made based on the business requirements. In short, both the connectors we need in Power Automate flow. So, while you are categorizing these connectors in your Power Platform DLP policy, we should keep these two connectors in the same business category.
Let’s look at the practical differences between Excel Online Business and OneDrive Connector in Power Automate.
If we login to the Power Automate Maker site and create a sample flow to test the Excel connectors, we can see there are two Excel connectors (shown below):
List of triggers in in Excel Online (Business):
List of actions in in Excel Online (Business):
List of triggers in in Excel Online (OneDrive):
List of actions in in Excel Online (OneDrive):
Get worksheets: Example of Excel Online (Business) connector
Get worksheets: Example of Excel Online (OneDrive) connector
In the above two examples, we can easily see the difference in connector configuration. The Excel Online (Business) connector needs more parameters to be passed, and the Excel Online (OneDrive) connector needs just one parameter, which is the file name. And also, we have seen that there are no triggers for Excel Online (OneDrive), but Excel Online (Business) has.
By now, we have learned the uses of the Excel connectors in Power Automate, whether your Excel file is stored in your OneDrive or in the SharePoint Online document library. That’s fantastic. But the question is: where should we store our documents or files? Should it be in OneDrive, SharePoint Online, or even Microsoft Teams? For these questions, there is a very good article that explains all your clarifications. It is worth reading this article: SharePoint, OneDrive, or Microsoft Teams: Which tool when for files?
Summary: Excel Online (Business) Vs Excel Online (OneDrive)
Thus, in this “Power Automate Excel Online Business vs. OneDrive” article, we have learned the difference between two Excel connectors, Excel Online (Business) and Excel Online (OneDrive)—an in- depth understanding of these two connectors and when we should use which connectors.
See Also: Power Platform Articles
You may also visit the Power Platform article hub, where you will see a bunch of articles focusing on Power Platform, like Power Automate, Power Apps, etc. All the articles are written with real-time project scenarios and troubleshooting techniques.
If you found this article helpful and enjoyed it, please consider sharing it with your friends and colleagues. Please don’t forget to subscribe to our site to receive our latest articles directly in your inbox. 🙂
If you’ve found value in my articles and want to support the growth of this tech knowledge hub, consider buying me a virtual coffee. Every coffee you buy is a vote for the continuation of quality tech content. Your contribution goes a long way in covering hosting fees, acquiring new tools, and maintaining the site for everyone’s benefit.
About Post Author
