Viewing Two Workbooks Side by Side
Show two files at once and scroll them together, so you can compare row by row.
Compare Without Switching
Side by Side puts two workbooks on screen together. Turn on synchronous scrolling and they move as one, which makes comparing two versions painless.
- Open both files — They must both be open
- View ▸ View Side by Side — They tile together
- Synchronous Scrolling — Both scroll as one
How to do it
View tab ▸ Window group ▸ View Side by Side ▸ Synchronous Scrolling
Reset Window Position puts them back to an even split if you have dragged them out of shape.
| Item | What it does |
|---|---|
| View Side by Side | Tiles two workbooks |
| Synchronous Scrolling | Scrolls both together |
| Reset Window Position | Restores an even split |
| Arrange All | Choose tiled or stacked |
Comparing Two Versions
View ▸ View Side by Side ▸ Synchronous Scrolling ▸ scroll once, both move
| Feature | What it does |
|---|---|
| View Side by Side | Tiles two workbooks |
| Synchronous Scrolling | Both scroll together |
| Reset Window Position | Back to an even split |
| Arrange All ▸ Horizontal | One above the other |
| Arrange All ▸ Vertical | One beside the other |
| New Window | Two views of the SAME file |
Result: Scroll as one
New Window is the trick for comparing two distant parts of one single file.
Do this
- Turn on Synchronous Scrolling for identical layouts
- Use New Window to compare one file with itself
- Reset Window Position when the split gets messy
Avoid
- Comparing by switching back and forth
- Leaving sync scrolling on for different layouts
- Not knowing New Window exists
📌 Synchronous Scrolling only helps if both sheets have the same layout. Otherwise turn it off.
Practice
- Open two files and use View Side by Side.
- Turn on Synchronous Scrolling.
- Use New Window on a single file and tile it.
Quick quiz: You want to compare row 10 and row 5000 of the SAME file, side by side. What do you use?
- View Side by Side
- View ▸ New Window, then Arrange All
- Copy the data to a second file
Show answer
View ▸ New Window ▸ Arrange All ▸ Vertical — New Window opens a second view of the same file, which you can then tile.
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