# How to send XLSX files

XLSX (Microsoft Excel workbook) files are often too big for email and chat apps. Here is how big they get and how to send them exactly as they are.

_Source: https://sharelargefilesfree.com/send-xlsx-files · Updated 2026-10-13_

**Quick answer:** To send a large XLSX file, upload it to Share Large Video Files (up to 20 GB, no account) and share the download link: the file arrives unchanged. A 100,000-row data export is about 25 MB, more than most email providers accept.

## What is a XLSX file?

XLSX is Excel's workbook format, used for financial models, data exports, inventories and research data. A single sheet can hold up to 1,048,576 rows and 16,384 columns.

Workbooks grow with the amount of data, heavy formatting, pivot table caches and embedded images. Data exports with hundreds of thousands of rows are commonly 50 to 200 MB, and large files become slow to open as well as awkward to email.

Extensions: .xlsx, .xlsm, .xlsb, .xls.

## How big are XLSX files?

| File | Typical size |
| --- | --- |
| A budget or small financial model | under 1 MB to a few MB |
| A 100,000-row sales export with 20 columns | roughly 10 to 30 MB |
| A workbook near the 1 million row limit on several sheets | roughly 100 to 500 MB |

## Which apps can send one?

Can you send a 100,000-row data export (about 25 MB) as an attachment?

| App | Limit | Fits? |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Gmail | 25 MB per email | Yes |
| Outlook.com | 20 to 25 MB per email | Yes |
| WhatsApp (document) | 2 GB per file | Yes |
| Telegram | 2 GB per file | Yes |
| Facebook Messenger | 100 MB per file | Yes |
| Discord (free) | 20 MB per file | No, send a link |
| Slack | 1 GB per file | Yes |
| WeTransfer (free) | 3 GB per transfer | Yes |
| **Share Large Video Files** | 20 GB per transfer | Send the link anywhere |

Limits from our [file size limits by app](https://sharelargefilesfree.com/file-size-limits-by-app) table, checked against each service's help pages.

## How to send XLSX files without changing them

1. Open [Share Large Video Files](https://sharelargefilesfree.com/) in any browser and choose **Get a link** (or **Send by email**).
2. Drop XLSX files on the upload box, or pick a whole folder. Up to 20 GB and 1000 files per transfer.
3. Optional: add a password, a download limit or an expiry under More options.
4. Copy the link (or show the QR code) and send it by chat or email. The recipient downloads the original file, byte for byte.

## Tips for sending XLSX files

- Saving as XLSB (Excel binary) often makes very large workbooks noticeably smaller and faster in Excel.
- For raw data, a zipped CSV is often much smaller and opens in any tool.
- Macro-enabled workbooks (.xlsm) may be blocked or disabled by the recipient's security settings; tell them to expect macros.
- Delete unused sheets, pivot caches and pasted images before sending.

## How to open a XLSX file

**Microsoft Excel** on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android. **Mac and iPhone:** Numbers opens XLSX. **Everywhere:** Google Sheets, LibreOffice Calc and Excel for the web. Very large workbooks may exceed the limits of Google Sheets.

**On our download page:** the recipient can read a spreadsheet in the page before downloading it, without Office installed (shown when the site's document preview is on). The download is your original file, still editable.

## Frequently asked questions

### How many rows can an Excel sheet have?

1,048,576 rows and 16,384 columns per sheet. Larger data sets need several sheets, CSV files or a database.

### How can I make a large Excel file smaller?

Save it as XLSB, remove unused formatting and pivot caches, or export the raw data as a CSV and zip it.

### Can I open XLSX without Excel?

Yes. Google Sheets, LibreOffice Calc, Numbers and Excel for the web all open XLSX, though complex macros only work in desktop Excel.