How to Update a Smartsheet from an Excel File
Data often lives in two places: a Smartsheet your team works in, and an Excel export from another system. Getting the Excel changes back into the sheet is where it gets awkward — Smartsheet's import creates a brand-new sheet rather than updating the one you have. Here are the options, from manual to automatic.
Option 1: copy and paste
For a handful of rows, copying cells from Excel and pasting them into the grid works. It gets risky fast: the paste lands by position, so the rows in Excel must line up exactly with the rows in the sheet. If the sheet has been sorted, filtered or had rows added since the export, values land on the wrong rows with no warning.
Option 2: re-import the file
Smartsheet can import an Excel file (File > Import), but the import always creates a new sheet. Attachments, comments, automations, forms, and any cross-sheet references pointing at the old sheet do not come along. Re-importing is a rebuild, not an update.
Option 3: Data Shuttle
Smartsheet's own answer for recurring file uploads is Data Shuttle, a premium add-on that can merge uploaded files into an existing sheet on a schedule. It is a good fit for enterprise pipelines, but it is a paid add-on gated to eligible plans, and setup is heavier than a one-off update warrants.
Option 4: sync by unique ID
Our Data Sync tool updates the sheet you already have. Upload the Excel (or CSV/JSON) file, pick the column that uniquely identifies each row in both places, and each file row is matched to its sheet row by ID — row order never matters. Only cells that actually differ are written, blanks in the file leave existing cells alone unless you opt in to clearing, and a preview shows every change before anything is saved.
Do it in one pass instead
Upload a CSV, JSON or Excel file and update the matching Smartsheet rows by unique ID. Only changed cells are written, with a preview before anything is saved.
Try Data Sync FreeFrequently asked questions
Can I update an existing Smartsheet from an Excel file?
Not directly with the built-in import, which always creates a new sheet. To update rows in place you need copy-paste (risky beyond a few rows), the paid Data Shuttle add-on, or a sync tool that matches rows by a unique ID.
How are Excel rows matched to Smartsheet rows?
With our sync tool, by a unique ID column that exists in both the file and the sheet. Each file row updates the sheet row with the same ID, so sorting and row order never matter.
What happens to cells my Excel file leaves blank?
By default blank values leave the existing cell untouched, so a partial export cannot wipe data. Clearing cells from blanks is an explicit opt-in toggle.