xlwings is now in the Add-in Store

Hi everyone!

Big news 🚀 ! The xlwings Lite add-in is now available in Excel’s add-in store. It’s a FREE add-in both for private and commercial usage. And yes: it doesn’t require a local installation of Python and stores the Python code in the workbook for easy distribution.

It’s the best of VBA, Office Scripts, and Python in a single app. While it's still early-stage, I believe it outperforms the official Python in Excel solution in every way. Don’t believe me? Have a look at the feedback from the first users!

I made a quick video walkthrough, so you can get an idea. But better yet: go to the add-in store, install it (no registration needed), and start building something amazing!

✨ Key Highlights:

• Free & easy to install: Available for free in the Office add-in store for both personal and commercial use. No registration or login required, simply install and create amazing things!

• Cross-platform: Works on Windows, macOS, and Excel for the web. It’s compatible with Microsoft 365 as well as recent perpetual versions like Office 2024.

• No Python installation required: You don’t need to have Python installed as Python runs inside the browser that powers modern Excel add-ins (using WebAssembly via Pyodide).

• Easy distribution: Python code is stored inside the workbook, making the xlwings Lite add-in the only requirement to run your workbook.

• Custom functions & scripts: Define native custom functions (a.k.a. user-defined functions “UDFs”) and run automation scripts by clicking a button.

• Excel object model: Access the Excel object model to insert a new sheet, format an Excel range as table, set the color of a cell, etc.

• Install packages: Install and use libraries like pandas, Polars, DuckDB, or even your own custom Python packages.

• Web API access: Fetch data from APIs that support CORS.

• Lightning-fast: All code runs locally on your machine, eliminating network latency and delivering lightning-fast performance!

• Fully local & private: Runs entirely on your computer without sending data out. The only exception is Microsoft’s mandatory telemetry, which you can eliminate through self-hosting.

• Familiar & powerful editor: xlwings Lite uses the same editor as VS Code, supporting many of the same keyboard shortcuts to make you more efficient.

• Self-hosting: For maximum security, you can deploy xlwings Lite on your own infrastructure, behind your firewall (“on-premise installation”).

• Works offline: xlwings Lite only requires a network connection for loading the add-in. Once loaded, xlwings Lite works offline.

Happy coding!
~ Felix