MPP to Excel
Open an MPP file in Excel, without Microsoft Project
Excel can't read an .mpp file. Upload it here and download the programme as an .xlsx: one row per activity with its dates, durations, float and logic, plus a sheet listing every link.
Open your file freeFree account. No card, no install.
How to convert an MPP file to Excel
- Create a free account with your email or Google. No card is asked for.
- Upload the .mpp. The programme opens in the viewer, usually in under a minute; large files take a few minutes.
- Click Export to Excel, above the programme, and open the .xlsx it downloads.
Why Excel can't open an .mpp
.mpp is Microsoft Project's own file format, and Excel has no way to import it. The usual route is to open the file in Project and export from there, which needs a Project licence.
ScheduleLens reads the .mpp on our servers and writes the spreadsheet for you. Dates are the current ones: actual where work has started or finished, otherwise the forecast. Durations, float and lags are in whole working days. Float and critical flags are the values Project recorded; where the file holds no float for an unfinished activity, we calculate it and say so in the Float source column.
What's in the spreadsheet
One row per activity
ID, name, WBS, type, original and remaining duration, start, finish, % complete and status. The ID is Project's Unique ID, which stays fixed when rows are inserted or moved.
Predecessors and successors
Each activity's logic in the notation Project uses, such as 1040 SS+2, written with Unique IDs. An ID on its own is finish-to-start with no lag.
Float and the critical flag
Total float and the critical flag as recorded in your file, with a column saying where each float value came from.
A sheet of every link
Predecessor, successor, type and lag on their own rows, with names, ready to filter or pivot.
Filters switched on
The header row is frozen and Excel's own filters are on, so you can sort and filter straight away.
The programme in the browser too
The same upload opens in the viewer: Gantt chart grouped by WBS, logic links and the critical path.
The viewer is view-only: nothing in your file is changed. Each upload also gets a free schedule-quality preview; the full report with every finding is paid.
Questions
- Does the spreadsheet keep the WBS?
- Each activity row carries its WBS name, so you can filter or group by it. The spreadsheet is a flat list; the WBS tree, Gantt chart and logic lines are in the viewer.
- Are resources and costs included?
- No. The export holds activities, dates, durations, float, progress and logic. Resource and cost fields are not exported.
- Can I turn the spreadsheet back into an .mpp?
- No. The export is for reading, filtering and reporting. To change the programme, use the software that made it.
- Is it really free?
- Yes. Create a free account with your email or Google; no card is asked for. A free account can run 2 analyses a day, with files up to 15 MB and schedules up to 15,000 activities. Each upload opens in the viewer and gets a free quality preview; you pay only if you want the full report.
- Can I edit the programme?
- No. The viewer is read-only, so nothing in your file changes. To change the programme, use the software that made it.
- Is the critical path the one in my file?
- Yes. Float and critical flags are the values recorded in your file. Where the file recorded no float for an unfinished activity, we calculate it and mark it as calculated.
- What happens to my file?
- The uploaded file is deleted once it has been processed. The programme view is kept for 30 days so you can come back to it, then deleted. Subscribers who track a project keep an encrypted copy of the schedule for that; the privacy page has the detail.
Open your file free
Upload it and the programme opens in your browser, usually within a few minutes.
Open your file free