v2.0.0: charts, PivotTables, formula calculation and large files

Excel MCP Server 2.0 lets Claude, Cursor, VS Code and other AI clients create and edit Excel files with real charts, PivotTables, slicers and calculated formulas. Microsoft Excel is not required, and it runs on Windows, macOS and Linux.

Highlights

• Charts of every Excel type: column, bar, line, pie, scatter, bubble, combo with secondary axis, plus the Excel 2016 types (waterfall, histogram, Pareto, box and whisker, treemap, sunburst, funnel). They are drawn as Excel draws them.
• Real PivotTables: with slicers, timelines and grouped dates. Excel opens and refreshes them with the same values.
• Formula calculation without Excel: about 260 functions, including financial, statistical, lookup, LET and dynamic arrays (FILTER, SORT, UNIQUE, SEQUENCE), checked against 2,800+ results recorded from Excel.
• Dynamic arrays and spills: written exactly as Excel writes them. References update as Excel updates them on every row, column and sheet change.
• Tables: totals rows and calculated columns.
• Conditional formats and validation: every conditional format type, including data bars and icon sets; data validation with list sources.
• Sparklines, sorting, filters, find and replace, Paste Special, remove duplicates, text to columns and fill series.
• Layout: printing, protection, images, notes and named ranges.
• Large workbooks: reads stream in flat memory, and a page of a 200,000-row sheet comes back in seconds.
• Opt-in VBA writing: turned on with --allow-vba-write.
• Current MCP: MCP Python SDK 2.3 (protocol 2026-07-28), with typed tool schemas that work across clients.

Install in one click from https://excelmcpserver.com, or run uvx excel-mcp-server stdio.

2.0 changes tool names, parameters and results. See "Upgrading from 1.x" below.

2.0 grows the server from 26 to 42 tools: charts of every Excel type, PivotTables, slicers,
sparklines, sorting, find and replace, print setup, protection and opt-in VBA writing. It
calculates formulas without Excel, updates references on every structural edit as Excel does,
and keeps content it cannot model instead of deleting it. Tool parameters and results are now
consistent, which breaks 1.x clients; see "Upgrading from 1.x" at the end.

Added

• Tools: set_table, create_pivot_table, delete_pivot_table, delete_chart,
  add_sparklines, delete_sparklines, add_slicer, delete_slicer, sort_range,
  transform_range, replace_cells, set_defined_name, delete_defined_name, set_note,
  delete_note, insert_image, delete_image and set_workbook_settings.
• Opt-in VBA writing: --allow-vba-write (or EXCEL_MCP_ALLOW_VBA_WRITE=1) adds
  write_vba_module and delete_vba_module for .xlsm/.xltm files (standard, class,
  ThisWorkbook and sheet modules; creates the VBA project if needed). Absent by default and
  in --read-only mode; code is stored, never run. create_workbook can then create
  .xlsm/.xltm.
• Formula calculation: read_range in values mode calculates formulas with no stored result
  (about 260 functions, including LET, SORT, FILTER, UNIQUE, SEQUENCE, SUBTOTAL,
  AGGREGATE, INDIRECT, CELL, INFO, HYPERLINK, structured references and spill
  references A1#), checked against 2,800+ results recorded from Excel. Results Excel stored
  are kept; formulas it cannot reproduce are returned as null and listed in uncalculated.
  Work per call is bounded. read_range also accepts whole-column and whole-row spans
  (B:B, 2:3).
• Formulas are checked against Excel's syntax and argument counts before anything is written,
  in every place a formula can be stored (Formula '=SUM(A1:' is not valid: unclosed '('.).
  Functions added after 2007 are stored with the _xlfn. prefix. Formulas that return several
  values are stored as dynamic array formulas, as Excel stores them, and every save
  recalculates their spill ranges (#SPILL! where cells are in the way); write_range
  reports formulas that a non-empty cell blocks in blocked.
• create_chart: any ranges on any sheet through series (or a source block, with
  series_in), replace and name, a chart sheet when at is omitted; types doughnut,
  radar, bubble and the Excel 2016 waterfall, histogram, pareto, box_whisker,
  treemap, sunburst and funnel; scatter subtypes (scatter_style); combo charts and
  secondary axes; trendlines and error bars; axis title, scale, log, reverse, number
  format, gridlines and label position; data labels; series colors and markers; grouping,
  colors, legend, title_size, plot_color and style. Options that do not fit the chart
  type are rejected.
• create_pivot_table makes a real PivotTable that Excel refreshes, with its figures also
  written to the cells (matching Excel's, checked against about 200 recorded PivotTables):
  show_as and number_format per values field, field_settings (show_items, sort,
  group_dates, group_numbers), calculated_fields, layout, subtotals, values_in.
• add_slicer and delete_slicer: slicers for tables and PivotTables and timelines for
  PivotTable date fields, with selection (filtering the PivotTable or table), style, columns,
  sort, and one slicer for several PivotTables that share a cache. Grouped dates work.
• add_sparklines: line, column and win/loss sparklines with colors, emphasized points, axis
  options and date axes.
• set_table takes options like Excel's Table Design tab (style, header row, totals row with
  a function per column, banded rows and columns, first and last column, filter buttons),
  calculated columns (=[@Price]*[@Qty], filled into new rows) and resizing through range.
• add_conditional_format: the rule types of Excel's menu (top, bottom, above_average,
  below_average, duplicate, unique, contains_text, not_contains_text, begins_with,
  ends_with, date, blanks, no_blanks, errors, no_errors, icon_set with the 17
  standard sets plus 3Stars, 3Triangles and 5Boxes, custom icons, thresholds,
  reverse), Excel 2010 data bars (gradient or solid, border, negative bars, axis),
  hide_values, stop_if_true and priority.
• add_data_validation: list source from cells or a name, time type, input message
  (prompt_title, prompt), error_style, error_title, and dates written as 2026-01-31.
• set_sheet_layout: hide, show and group rows and columns (rows, columns); sheet
  visibility, position and view (zoom, gridlines, headings, right to left, active sheet,
  selected cell); print_setup; sheet protection; and auto_filter with criteria (values,
  comparisons, top or bottom N, average, fill color) that hides the rows that fail. A table is
  filtered by passing its name as range.
• write_range takes links: hyperlinks to http, https, mailto or places in the
  workbook, with a tooltip. format_range sets locked and formula_hidden. clear_range
  has clear: "rules" (conditional formats and validation).
• copy_range takes paste (all, values, formulas, formats), transpose and
  skip_blanks. transform_range runs remove_duplicates, text_to_columns and fill
  (Fill Down, Right and Series).
• describe_sheet lists charts, images, PivotTables, slicers, timelines, sparklines, notes,
  hyperlinks, hidden rows and columns, the print area, protection and view, each object by
  name. describe_workbook also returns document properties, calculation settings, the
  active sheet, chart_sheets and object counts per sheet.
• Editing keeps content that openpyxl cannot model, byte for byte: sparklines, Excel 2010
  conditional formats and validation, slicers and timelines, newer chart types, threaded
  comments, dynamic array metadata, shapes, form controls, header and footer pictures, custom
  XML and PivotTable extensions. Content whose target is deleted follows Excel (an unused
  slicer cache is removed, validation formulas become #REF!).
• Limits gains max_copy_cells (copy_sheet), max_unpack_factor and
  max_compression_ratio.

Changed

• Built on the MCP Python SDK 2.3, which supports the 2026-07-28 protocol revision. Tool
  schemas write unions as anyOf of single types instead of "type": [...] lists, which some
  clients (Gemini, strict validators) reject.
• Breaking: consistent parameters, one name per concept: sheet, range, at (the
  top-left cell of whatever is placed), source, name, with units in names (table below).
  Charts and images are selected by name, not by index.
• Breaking: set_table replaces create_table and also changes an existing table
  (style and striped_rows moved into options; new tables use TableStyleMedium2).
  create_pivot_table replaces create_summary_table; its result is a PivotTable.
• Breaking: create_chart loses show_legend, data_sheet and the options
  x_axis_title and y_axis_title; options.legend is bottom, right, left, top or
  none and defaults to Excel's for the chart type; at is optional. create_chart is
  marked destructive, since replace overwrites a chart.
• Breaking: charts are drawn as current Excel draws them: gray text, light gridlines, no
  rounded corners, one color per series, gaps between clustered columns. Scatter charts plot
  points, line charts are straight without markers unless smooth or markers is set, and
  horizontal bar charts list rows top-down.
• Breaking: compact results. read_range returns {range, values, next_range?} (no
  sheet or truncated; page on while next_range is present) and omits trailing empty
  cells and rows. find_cells returns matches as {sheet: {cell: value}}.
  describe_workbook returns sheets, defined_names (objects with name, refers_to,
  sheet; hidden names left out) and has_vba, without path, size or counts.
  list_workbooks returns {path: size_bytes}. describe_sheet drops chart_count (use
  charts) and empty fields. Midnight dates read as 2026-01-31.
• Breaking: tools that change a workbook return a small object (sheet, range, name,
  and a note where needed) instead of a sentence, and list no output schema; only tools
  that return data keep one.
• Breaking: set_sheet_layout takes column_widths_chars and row_heights_pt as objects
  ({"A": 20}, {"1": 30}), and auto_filter is an object (range, filters, remove).
• Breaking: add_conditional_format rules that format cells need a fill_color or
  font_color, and fields that do not fit the rule type are rejected. New rules take the next
  free priority.
• Breaking: add_data_validation error_message and prompt are limited to 255
  characters, and a list needs options or source.
• insert_rows_or_columns, delete_rows_or_columns and rename_sheet update references as
  Excel does, workbook-wide: formulas, names, conditional formats, validation, merges, tables,
  filters, print settings, charts, images, PivotTables, sparklines and shapes. Like Excel,
  an edit that would cut through an array formula, a PivotTable or a table header fails and
  saves nothing. Rows inserted into a table get its calculated column formulas.
• copy_sheet copies what Excel's "Create a copy" does: validation, conditional formats,
  images, charts (re-pointed at the copy), tables (renamed), PivotTables, slicers and
  timelines, shapes, form controls, embedded objects, protected ranges, freeze panes, filters,
  print setup, protection and sheet-scoped names. What it cannot copy is named in the
  result's note.
• INDIRECT, CELL and INFO are allowed in formulas, since they only read the open
  workbook and the host. HYPERLINK is allowed with a literal http://, https://,
  mailto: or #Sheet!A1 link.
• read_range, find_cells and describe_workbook stream the workbook: memory stays flat
  instead of growing with the sheet, and formulas without stored results are calculated from
  the rows they use. import_workbook checks uploads without loading every cell.
• Invalid arguments are reported as one readable line per problem, with suggestions
  (rnage: unknown field; did you mean 'range'?). Invalid formula syntax fails with
  InvalidFormulaError.
• An edit whose saved file would exceed the file size limit is refused and leaves the file
  unchanged.
• Tool schemas are much smaller: no generated titles, null unions or defaults for absent
  values, and path, sheet and range parameters are explained once in the server
  instructions. A test keeps the total under a budget.

Removed

• Breaking: create_table (use set_table) and create_summary_table (use
  create_pivot_table).

Fixed

• write_range stored formulas that return several values (=SUM(A1:A5*2)) as plain
  formulas, which Excel showed with @ and a single value; they are now dynamic array
  formulas.
• Formulas using IFS, XLOOKUP, TEXTJOIN, STDEV.S, SORT and other newer functions
  showed #NAME? in Excel (SORT made the file unopenable) because the _xlfn. prefix was
  missing. Formulas are shown as typed, without _xlfn., _xlws. or _xlpm..
• Editing a workbook silently deleted sparklines, slicers, timelines, threaded comments,
  newer chart types, shapes, form controls and the other content listed under Added, and
  damaged charts (chart style, rounded corners, plot area fill, area chart axes, empty labels
  shown as "None"). With several PivotTable caches, every cache after the first was linked to
  the first one's records.
• Chart titles, axis titles and legends sat on top of the plot in Excel.
• Date limits in data validation (2026-01-31) were stored as the formula 2026-01-31.
• Inserting or deleting rows or columns left hyperlinks in place; they move with their cells,
  and copy_range copies them.
• set_sheet_layout could write overlapping column definitions.
• format_range font_name took no effect in Excel on files this server creates; setting a
  name now clears the theme font scheme, as picking a font in Excel does.
• Dates written with write_range into a default-width column showed ####; the column now
  widens to fit.
• import_workbook into an .xlsx or .xltx path left an orphan VBA project; it is removed,
  as Excel does.
• New workbooks named "openpyxl" as their creator.
• A drive-relative path such as C:book.xlsx gets a clear error.
• A tool that fails unexpectedly reports "Unexpected error in ; see server log" and logs
  the exception, instead of the SDK's "Error executing tool ".

Security

• Every workbook the server opens is checked against the zip bomb limits
  (max_unpack_factor, max_compression_ratio), not only uploads. GHSA-jf2g-fjwq-rjr6
• import_workbook checks every XML part wherever it is stored; rejects duplicate or unsafe
  part names, data connections, query tables, external links, linked OLE objects and external
  relationships other than hyperlinks; caps expanded size and compression ratio while
  reading; and scans in constant memory with a nesting limit. Hyperlinks to files, network
  locations, schemes other than http, https and mailto, or with credentials are removed
  and reported in note. GHSA-99mr-c7r6-xhrc
• Network (UNC) paths, Windows device paths and reserved device names are rejected, with or
  without --allow-dir, unless the allowed folder is on that share; the rules apply again to
  the resolved path. GHSA-wgvf-cmgr-7573
• Excel 4.0 macro functions that read files, the system or workbook internals, or run other
  programs (FILES, GET.*, APP.*, RUN, EXEC, SEND.KEYS, SQL.*, MAIL.* and
  related) are blocked in every formula, including defined names. GHSA-w7wm-p57p-8q22
• The formula calculator matches wildcards without backtracking, limits formula length and
  nesting, checks sizes before building text and arrays, and ends hostile formulas as
  uncalculated cells.
• Reading a VBA project fails fast on malformed containers and caps the module count and the
  decompressed size. GHSA-mvpx-mwxr-g2f5

Upgrading from 1.x

1.x	2.0
create_table (style, striped_rows)	set_table (options.style, options.striped_rows)
create_summary_table (source_range, group_by, values, target_sheet, target_cell)	create_pivot_table (source, row_fields, value_fields, sheet, at); a value's aggregation is function
create_sheet sheet	new_name
insert_rows_or_columns, delete_rows_or_columns at	start
write_range start_cell	at
copy_range target_cell, target_sheet	at, to_sheet
create_chart anchor_cell, data_range, data_sheet	at, source (Data!A1:C13)
create_chart options.show_legend, x_axis_title, y_axis_title	options.legend, options.x_axis.title, options.y_axis.title
set_sheet_layout column_widths, row_heights (lists)	column_widths_chars, row_heights_pt (objects)
set_sheet_layout auto_filter: "A1:F100"	auto_filter: {"range": "A1:F100"}
describe_sheet chart_count, column_widths	charts, column_widths_chars
describe_workbook defined_names (strings)	objects with name, refers_to, sheet
read_range sheet, truncated	removed; page while next_range is present
find_cells matches as a list	{sheet: {cell: value}}
Results as sentences	objects with sheet, range, name