XLSX and XLS explained
XLSX is Excel's modern format — a ZIP of XML holding cells, formulas, formatting, multiple sheets, charts and pivot tables.
The pre-2007 Excel format is a binary structure limited to 65,536 rows and 256 columns — limits modern datasets routinely exceed.
- Where XLSX files come from
- Excel, Google Sheets exports and business reporting systems.
- Where XLS is used
- Spreadsheets from Excel 2003 or earlier, and some legacy export systems.