Advanced Excel Skills: What They Are and Which to Learn First
A clear list of advanced Excel skills employers mean: lookups, pivot tables, dynamic arrays, data cleaning, Power Query and more, with what to learn first.
By Ayoub Farid · · 2 min read
"Advanced Excel" means different things to different employers. For an admin role it might mean VLOOKUP and pivot tables. For a finance analyst, it means models and Power Query. Here's what's usually included, roughly from most to least common.
The skills
1. Lookups
VLOOKUP, XLOOKUP, INDEX MATCH. Combining data from different sheets is the most requested "advanced" skill.
2. Conditional formulas
SUMIFS, COUNTIFS, AVERAGEIFS, nested IF and IFS. Building summaries without pivot tables.
3. Pivot tables
Summarise thousands of rows by category, month or region in seconds, with grouping, filters and calculated fields.
4. Data cleaning
TRIM, text functions, split text, remove duplicates, fixing numbers stored as text and dates.
5. Dynamic arrays
FILTER, UNIQUE, SORT, SEQUENCE: formulas that return whole tables.
6. Charts and dashboards
Choosing the right chart, combining charts with slicers, keeping reports readable.
7. Data validation and conditional formatting
Drop-down lists, input rules, highlighting exceptions.
8. Power Query
Importing and cleaning data repeatably, merging files, unpivoting.
9. Power Pivot and data models
Relationships between tables and DAX measures for large datasets.
10. Macros and VBA
Automating repetitive tasks. Less common in job descriptions than it used to be.
11. Financial modelling
Scenarios, sensitivity tables, NPV/IRR, building three-statement models.
What to learn first
Don't jump to VBA. In order:
- Make sure the basics are solid: references, $ locks, IF, SUMIFS. Many "advanced" users still make $ mistakes.
- Lookups.
- Pivot tables.
- Data cleaning.
- Dynamic arrays.
- Then Power Query or modelling, depending on your role.
How to show these skills
List specific tools, not "advanced Excel". See Excel skills for resume.
Where Cellio fits
Cellio covers the formula foundations in short daily lessons, the part every advanced skill is built on. Lookups and data cleaning units are coming next. For pivot tables and Power Query, you'll want a computer and a real dataset.
Frequently asked questions
What counts as advanced Excel skills?
Usually lookups, pivot tables, complex conditional formulas, data cleaning and dynamic arrays; for some roles, Power Query, VBA and modelling.
Is VLOOKUP an advanced skill?
Many employers consider it intermediate-to-advanced, and it's a common test item.
How long does it take to learn advanced Excel?
Typically a few months of regular practice after the basics. See how long it takes to learn Excel.
Do I need VBA?
Only for roles that automate a lot of work. Most job descriptions focus on formulas and pivot tables.