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Workiva Sync is an Excel add-in available through Microsoft Appsource Marketplace that copies only the data or formulas in selected cells from Excel to the Workiva Platform. Workiva Sync operates under the assumption that the destination Workiva spreadsheet is set up and configured the way that you want, so it doesn't (and can't!) bring over any metadata or formatting. This allows you to update existing Workiva spreadsheets or create new ones with data from your local computer without worrying that the formatting or structure will change when you do the update.  

Workiva Sync works on an API basis to provide the same data security as the Workiva Platform and  eliminates the need for reinstallation if Workiva adds new features.

Note: To preserve formatting, we recommend using the native Workiva XSLX import feature when first bringing an Excel file into Workiva. After the initial import, you can then use Workiva Sync to efficiently make updates.

Installation requirements

Before you install Workiva Sync, you'll need to meet the following requirements.

User permissions

The user account performing the installation must have administrator rights on the local computer.

Supported Excel versions

Workiva Sync is compatible with Microsoft-supported versions of Excel (both 32-bit and 64-bit) for the following platforms.

• Excel on iPad
• Excel on Mac (Microsoft 365)
• Excel on Windows (Microsoft 365)
• Excel on the Web

For the best experience, we recommend Microsoft Office 365 integrated with the most recent desktop version of Excel.

Notes on end of support

Workiva Sync works with Microsoft-supported versions of Excel until Microsoft stops supporting them. After Microsoft support ends, you will need to upgrade the version of Microsoft Excel you have installed in order to continue using Workiva Sync.

• Office 2016 and Office 2019 — Microsoft ended support for both versions on October 14th, 2025.
• Office 2021 — Microsoft is scheduled to end support on October 13, 2026.
• Office LTSC 2024 — Microsoft is scheduled to end support on October 9, 2029.
• Office 365 — As this version follows Microsoft's Modern Lifecycle Policy, this means that there is no fixed "end of support date" for it.

Excel browser details

Microsoft 365 installations need to have WebView2 installed if you are using a build earlier than 16.0.13530.20424.

For more information, view these links:

• Browsers and WebView controls used by Office Add-ins
• Microsoft Edge WebView2

Workiva Sync offers a Use selected cells feature that lets users to sync only the data ranges currently selected in the Excel workbook. This feature is dependent on Excel API 1.9 which is only available in certain versions of Excel. For more information, see Excel JavaScript API requirement sets.

Installing Workiva Sync

The IT team responsible for managing your Microsoft tenant typically handles the installation. They have two options to install Workiva Sync:

• Microsoft 365 Admin Center — Upload the manifest file directly to the Microsoft tenant.
• Third-party tools — Use a centralized deployment tool to distribute the manifest file to users' machines.

The Workiva Sync installation puts a small (4KB) XML manifest file on the local computer. This file adds a Workiva Sync button to the Home toolbar. Clicking this button opens the embedded browser within Excel, where you can log into your Workiva Platform account, and where you can control where and how cells are synced. (This is a separate login from logging in directly to Workiva, but uses the same login procedure.) 

Installing Workiva Sync directly through Microsoft Appsource

If the Microsoft Appsource Marketplace is unblocked and users have permissions to add Office add-ins, end users may install Workiva Sync directly. If you are unable to install Workiva Sync directly through Microsoft Appsource, contact your company's IT resources.

To add Workiva Sync in Excel:

1. Open Excel and select the Insert tab.
2. Click the Add-ins icon. Its location on the Home toolbar and icon depends on the version of Excel you are using, and what other add-ins you have installed. Here are two examples:
   
3. In the Office Add-ins window, click Office Store.
4. Type "Workiva" in the search box. What you see will be something similar to the following:
5. Select Workiva Sync, and click Add.
6. Click Continue. Workiva Sync will be added to your Excel.

For additional information, see the Workiva Sync Installation Guide PDF.
 

Using Workiva Sync

You can use Workiva Sync to sync your Excel workbook to a blank or existing Workiva spreadsheet.

Note: If you're syncing to an existing Workiva spreadsheet, you may need to adjust it for changes to sync correctly. For example, if you added a new row of data in your Excel workbook, you must add an empty row in the same place in the Workiva spreadsheet. Also, if the sheet tab names in the Excel workbook don't match the sheet names in the Workiva spreadsheet, syncing will add new sheets with the Excel sheet tab names.

To sync an Excel file to your Workiva Platform account:

1. Open your version of Excel.
2. Click the Workiva Sync button in the Excel toolbar. The icon's appearance depends on your version of Excel; here are two examples of what the button may look like:
   
3. Choose your Workiva environment from the dropdown and click Next.
4. Select the Workspace you want to sync to and click Next.
5. Select Start a Sync.
6. Enter the required details in the Sync Details form.

   • Choose where to sync — You can search for files or click the dropdown which will list the most recent spreadsheets that you have edit permissions to. Once a spreadsheet is selected, Workiva Sync automatically selects Excel sheets to include in the sync where there's an identical sheet name match in the Workiva destination spreadsheet.

     Sheets not detected with the same sheet name are not automatically selected to be in the sync. These sheets can be deselected if you don't want to include them. Any non-hidden sheet in the Excel file can be manually selected to be included in the sync.

   • Use selected ranges — This syncs the selected ranges in the Excel sheets to be included in the sync. This option is not available in volume licensed versions of Excel 2016 and Excel 2019 (non-365).
   • Include formulas — Formulas in Excel will be synced as formulas if the functions they contain are Workiva supported. Unsupported formulas are synced as values. You can view which formulas were synced in a values and it'll provide navigation to specific cells in the Workiva destination sheet.

7. Once you've entered the details, select Sync.

   Note: The maximum number of cells that can be synced at once is 2 million; this is also the default number of cells that can be contained in a Workiva Spreadsheet.

8. When the sync is complete, a notice will appear in the lower right corner of the window.

Once your sync is complete, you can view the destination Workiva spreadsheet in your Workiva account.

Notes

• Workiva Sync is not related to the Local File Sync utility. 
  • Local File Sync allows you to open Workiva file attachments directly on your computer. 
    You are able to edit them and the edits will flow to the attachment within Workiva automatically. 
  • Workiva Sync is an Excel add-in that allows you to sync targeted data to a Workiva Spreadsheet from an external Excel file.
  • There are no restrictions by Workiva on WK Sync use. 
  • Workiva Sync only connects from Excel to Workiva; it is not bidirectional.
  • Workiva Sync only connects from Excel to Workiva; it does not work with any other spreadsheet applications.

Formatting and Metadata notes

• Fonts, colors, lines, and any other formatting in the original document is not imported.
  Workiva Sync assumes that you have (or will) set up all formatting in your Workiva Spreadsheet. Once that formatting is set up, it is not affected by future syncs.
• If there is information in your Workiva spreadsheet that you don't want to be overwritten, lock that cell in the Workiva Spreadsheet to prevent future changes.

Security notes

• Workiva Sync does not access end user data until the data is written to the Workiva Platform.
• No data is stored locally when using Workiva Sync.
• No software other than the manifest file is installed to the end user's computer.
• For additional security and data management, view Workiva Sync Technical Details.

Updating

Updates to Workiva Sync occur automatically, as the latest version of the Workiva Sync app always loads on login. Since Workiva Sync’s functionality is web-based, Workiva can and will update Workiva Sync without requiring any action by you or your IT team. There may be situations where we have security improvements or breaking changes where you will be notified in advance of the upcoming release. However those will be very rare.
In order to minimize maintenance overhead, Workiva very rarely changes the Workiva Sync manifest file.

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