---
title: "Desk sharing with Excel"
url: https://doorjames.com/compare/desk-sharing-with-excel/
language: en
updated: 2026-09-22
type: compare
section: resources
description: "Up to which size a spreadsheet works for desk booking, which costs stay invisible and when software starts to pay off."
translations: de=https://doorjames.com/de/vergleich/desk-sharing-mit-excel/
formats: https://doorjames.com/compare/desk-sharing-with-excel/index.md https://doorjames.com/compare/desk-sharing-with-excel/index.json https://doorjames.com/compare/desk-sharing-with-excel/index.jsonld
bookDemo: https://meet.doorjames.app/public-schedule/99469a6d66d20f7fdd5ee19182a8f8bd (30 min, Microsoft Teams)
---

# Desk sharing with Excel – where the limit is

> 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.

The most common competitor is not software but a spreadsheet. That works longer than many assume – but not indefinitely.

## 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.

| 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.

## 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.

## Related pages

- [Space calculator](https://doorjames.com/tools/office-space-calculator/)
- [Desk booking](https://doorjames.com/features/desk-booking/)
- [Workplace analytics](https://doorjames.com/features/workplace-analytics/)

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Door James by CGI · https://doorjames.com · doorjames.support@cgi.com