--- description: Learn to Import form External data sources like Microsoft Access, Website, XML, API, Text File, CSV, SQL Server into Excel title: How to Open & Convert XML File to Excel image: https://www.guru99.com/images/open-and-convert-xml-file-to-excel.png --- [Skip to content](#main) **⚡ Smart Summary** Importing XML to Excel links a spreadsheet to data that lives outside it, such as a web service, a database, or a text file. This page explains external data sources, imports a live XML currency feed from the web, opens a local XML file, and covers refreshing the data. * 🔗 **External Data:** Data that is linked or imported into Excel from a source outside Excel, such as Access, SQL Server, a web service, or a CSV file. * 🌐 **From Web:** The DATA tab, From Web button pulls a live XML feed, for example the European Central Bank exchange rates. * 📄 **From XML Import:** The DATA tab, From Other Sources, From XML Data Import opens a local XML file into a sheet. * 🗂️ **Options Dialog:** Excel asks how to place the XML, usually as a table in the existing worksheet. * 🔄 **Refresh:** Data, Refresh All updates every imported connection so the report always shows the latest figures. * ⚡ **Power Query:** Get & Transform is the modern way to import, clean, and reshape external data before it lands in the sheet. [ Read More ](javascript:void%280%29;) ![Open and Convert XML File to Excel](https://www.guru99.com/images/open-and-convert-xml-file-to-excel.png) Data is the bloodstream of any business entity. Businesses use different programs and formats to save the data depending on the business data storage requirements. You could have a payroll program powered by a database engine, you could have data in a CSV file or even from a website that you would like to analyse in Excel. This article shows you how you can achieve the above. ## What is external data source? External data is data that you link/import into excel from a source that resides outside excel. Examples of external include the following * Data stored in a Microsoft Access database. This could the information from a custom application i.e. **Payroll, Point of Sale, Inventory,** etc. * Data from[ SQL ](https://www.guru99.com/sql.html)Server or other database engines i.e. MySQL, Oracle, etc. – This could be information from a custom application * From a web site/web service – this could be information from a[ Web services ](https://www.guru99.com/web-services-tutorial.html)i.e. currency exchange rates from the internet, stock prices, etc. * Text file i.e. CSV, tab separated, etc. – this could be information from a third party application that does not provide direct links. Such data could include bank payments exported to comma separated file CSV, etc. * Other types i.e. HTML data, Windows Azure Market Place, etc. ## Website(XML data) external data source example In this example to import XML into Excel, we will assume we are trading the Euro currency and would like to get the exchange rates from the European Central Bank web service. The currency exchange rate API link is * Open a new workbook * Click on the DATA tab on the ribbon bar * Click on “From Web” button * You will get the following window [](https://www.guru99.com/images/5-2015/050215%5F1128%5FConnectingM5.png) 1. Enter in the address 2. Click on Go button, you will get the XML data preview 3. Click on Import button when done You will get the following options dialogue window [](https://www.guru99.com/images/5-2015/050215%5F1128%5FConnectingM6.png) * Click on OK button * You will get the following Excel import XML data [](https://www.guru99.com/images/5-2015/050215%5F1128%5FConnectingM7.png) ### RELATED ARTICLES * [How to Do Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication & Division in Excel ](https://www.guru99.com/getting-started-with-microsoft-excel.html "How to Do Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication & Division in Excel") * [Data Validation in Excel: Filters, Grouping, Sorting Examples ](https://www.guru99.com/excel-validation-filters-grouping.html "Data Validation in Excel: Filters, Grouping, Sorting Examples") * [SUMIF Function in Excel: Formula with Examples ](https://www.guru99.com/sumif-function-excel.html "SUMIF Function in Excel: Formula with Examples") * [Top 30 Microsoft Publisher Interview Questions and Answers ](https://www.guru99.com/ms-publisher-interview-questions.html "Top 30 Microsoft Publisher Interview Questions and Answers") ## How to Import XML to Excel Let’s take another example on how to import XML file in Excel, this time you have local XML not in form of web link. You can download XML File below. [Download the XML File](https://drive.google.com/uc?export=download&id=1TNhCKy%5F2idJ9Umwk5QAtrUNFEeCejBEh) Here is a step by step process on how to open XML file in [Excel](https://www.guru99.com/introduction-to-microsoft-excel.html): **Step 1) Create a new workbook in Excel** * Open a new workbook * Click on the DATA tab on the ribbon bar * Click on “From Other Source” [](https://www.guru99.com/images/1/excel-image-1.jpg) **Step 2) Select the XML as Data source** * Then click on “From XML Data Import” [](https://www.guru99.com/images/1/excel-image-3.jpg) **Step 3) Locate and select the XML file** * Now select the [XML File](https://www.guru99.com/xml-tutorials.html) to Excel sheet You will get the options dialogue window as above example * Click on OK button * You will get the following data [](https://www.guru99.com/images/1/excel-image-2.jpg) ## How to Refresh Imported External Data The main advantage of imported data over a copy and paste is that it keeps a live connection to the source, so it can be updated without importing again. A web feed such as the ECB exchange rates changes daily, and a single refresh brings in the new figures. 1. **Refresh one connection:** Click any cell inside the imported table, open the DATA tab, and choose Refresh. 2. **Refresh everything:** Choose Refresh All on the DATA tab to update every connection in the workbook at once. 3. **Refresh automatically:** Open Connection Properties and tick “Refresh every” a number of minutes, or “Refresh data when opening the file”, so the report stays current on its own. 4. **Manage connections:** Use Queries & Connections to see every source, rename it, or remove a connection that is no longer needed. **💡 Tip:** If a refresh fails, the source address may have changed or moved behind a login. Open Connection Properties to check the URL, and confirm the feed still opens in a browser. ## Power Query: The Modern Way to Import Data On Excel 2016 and later, the Get & Transform group on the DATA tab, also called Power Query, replaces most of the older import buttons. It imports the same sources but adds a step to clean and reshape the data before it reaches the sheet. * **Get Data:** Choose Get Data, then From File, From Database, or From Other Sources, including XML and the web. * **Transform:** In the Power Query Editor, remove columns, filter rows, split text, and change data types, all recorded as repeatable steps. * **Load:** Load the cleaned result into a table or straight into the data model, and refresh it later with one click. The older From Web and From XML Data Import buttons still work and are shown above, which is why both approaches remain useful to know. ## FAQs ⚡ What is the difference between importing and copy pasting data? A copy paste is a one time snapshot. An import keeps a live connection to the source, so the data can be refreshed later without repeating the steps. This keeps a report current as the source changes. 📄 What is an XML map in Excel? An XML map links the elements of an XML schema to cells in the worksheet. Once mapped, Excel knows where each XML field belongs, so a refresh or a new file fills the same layout automatically. 🔒 Why does Excel block or warn about external data? External connections can run content from another location, so Excel shows a security warning and may open the file in Protected View. Enable the content only when the source is trusted, such as your own feed or database. 🤖 Can AI import and clean external data for me? Yes. AI features such as Copilot in Excel suggest the right source, build the Power Query steps to clean the data, and load it into a table. The user checks the connection and the transformed result. 🧠 Can AI explain a messy imported data set? Yes. AI assistants profile the imported columns, flag missing values and wrong data types, and summarise what the data contains. This speeds up the cleaning that Power Query then applies to the source. #### Summarize this post with: ChatGPT Perplexity Grok Google AI **Stay Updated on AI** **Get Weekly AI Skills, Trends, Actionable Advice.** ##### Sign up for the newsletter Subscribe for Free You have successfully subscribed. 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