# Excel: how AI models rank it, September 2026

HR AI Recommendation Index, September 2026 Edition. Named in 12 judge labels across 8 categories by 6 of 12 models. Page: https://hr-ai-index.com/vendors/excel/

## Standing by category

| Category | Share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goals and OKRs | 0% | 44 | 50% | 2 |
| Org charts and org design | 0% | 78 | 100% | 2 |
| Succession planning | 0% | 99 | 100% | 2 |
| Workforce planning | 0% | 65 | 50% | 2 |
| HR compliance and policy management | 0% | 80 | 100% | 1 |
| Internal talent marketplace | 0% | 78 | 0% | 1 |
| Leave and absence management | 0% | 80 | 100% | 1 |
| Time and attendance | 0% | 78 | 100% | 1 |

## What the models said for it

- "Excel is adequate for organizations under 50 employees or teams building workforce planning capability from scratch" (Claude Haiku 4.5, Workforce planning)

## And against it

- "Using Excel, Google Sheets, or static offline templates to track your organization's succession plan is a widespread but dangerous practice." (Gemini 3.5 Flash, Succession planning)
- "relying on Excel trackers for FLSA (wage and hour) or harassment training is considered a compliance failure by auditors" (Qwen 3.7 Flash, HR compliance)
- "Spreadsheets & Manual Tracking (Excel / Google Sheets) ... Why Avoid: Spreadsheets simply do not scale." (Gemini 3.5 Flash, Leave)
- "Manual/static tools like PowerPoint, Excel, or Visio: Widely criticized for becoming outdated quickly" (Grok 4.1 Fast, Org charts)

## Record

- Method: https://hr-ai-index.com/methodology/
- Raw judge labels and full responses: https://hr-ai-index.com/data/
- License: CC BY 4.0. Cite as HR AI Recommendation Index, September 2026 Edition, hr-ai-index.com.