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Desk sharing with Excel – where the limit is
The most common competitor is not software but a spreadsheet. That works longer than many assume – but not indefinitely.
In short
A spreadsheet for desk booking works perfectly well with one location, few desks and stable teams. The limit is reached once several locations, parking, visitors or reporting are added: then double bookings appear, attendance becomes unclear, manual maintenance grows and there is no reliable basis for space decisions.
| Criterion | Door James | Excel & Outlook |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | EUR 2 per user per month | Apparently free; in practice maintenance effort and error cost |
| Double bookings | Prevented by the system, including Outlook sync | Regular, especially with concurrent editing |
| Attendance data | From check-ins, distinguishes booked from used | Planned bookings only, no actual usage |
| Visitors | Digital invitation, self check-in, badge, host notification | Paper list or a separate tool |
| Parking and assets | Same logic as desks | More spreadsheets or informal arrangements |
| Reporting | Occupancy per floor, area and weekday, automatic reports | Manual evaluation with limited meaning |
| Data protection | Configurable retention, roles, processing agreement | A spreadsheet of personal data without retention logic |
| Mobile | Apps, widgets, QR and geofence check-in | A spreadsheet on a phone |
Comparison as of September 2026. Statements about other providers come from their publicly available information and can change; please verify before using them in a decision.
Where the spreadsheet genuinely works
It would be dishonest to claim Excel is fundamentally unsuitable for desk booking. With one location, 30 desks and a settled team, a maintained spreadsheet works well – it is available immediately, everyone can use it and there is no licence cost.
Where it tips over
The limit is rarely headcount; it is the number of dimensions. Add a second location and maintenance doubles. Add parking and a second spreadsheet appears. Add visitors and a third list appears at reception. And as soon as someone asks about actual occupancy, the core problem surfaces: a spreadsheet knows planned bookings only, not real usage.
The data protection angle that gets overlooked
A spreadsheet with names, attendance days and seat numbers is a collection of personal data – usually without a deletion concept, without access restrictions and in any number of copies on drives and in mailboxes. In practice that is more often the trigger for replacement than the convenience gain.
When another product fits better
- You have one location with few desks and stable teams – a well-maintained spreadsheet is often good enough there.
- You are below 250 employees and therefore under our minimum.
- You are planning a move or reorganization anyway and want to introduce software afterwards.
Frequently asked questions
When is it worth switching?
A pragmatic indicator: as soon as more than one person maintains the spreadsheet, more than one location is covered, or the question about actual occupancy is asked for the first time.
What does the spreadsheet really cost?
The visible part is maintenance time. The invisible part is wrong bookings, search time, missing reporting and – with personal data and no deletion concept – a data protection risk.
Can we reuse the spreadsheet?
Yes. Asset lists are captured in spreadsheet form during the rollout anyway, so an existing one is useful preparation rather than wasted work.
Comparisons get easier with the product open
Thirty minutes side by side with your requirement list. You will know whether to shortlist us, and we will say so if something else fits better.