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Hi there, 

I hope someone can help me here. I am struggling a lot with the using Update Row (EXCEL) as a trigger for my automation. 

1) When you set up this trigger, you are asked to specify the column you want the trigger to react on. I did it, however, the automation gets triggered also when other columns are updated. 

2) Second and main problem, everytime I go into the Excel and I manually change a field in my triggering column, nothing really happens in Zapier, or it happens with a very large delay ( which I cannot link to a specific action of mine, it feels totally random)

3) When I open my Excel sheet, often I am asked if I want to enable external content. Is it possible that my issue is linked to this? 

Is anyone expert on the Excel integration? Would love to exchange thoughts!

Thank you for your precious time and help in advance.

Fabri

Hi @Fabri 

Zap trigger: Excel - Updated Row

Type: Scheduled (it can take from 1-15 minutes to fire depending on your Zapier plan)

Description: Triggers when a row is added OR updated in a worksheet.

That means the Zap will trigger for new rows AND for updated rows.

 

You can add a Filter as Step 2 to make sure conditions are met for when the Zap triggers for new rows:

https://zapier.com/apps/filter/help

 

 

 

Hi @Troy Tessalone, thank you for your prompt response. 

I get your point but the actual trigger is still not reliable to me. 

Yesterday i added 2 new rows and nothing happened. 

Then when I just dropped down two columns’ formulas to some rows, I got something like 500 triggers. 

I would really like to understand what exactly I need to do in order to trigger the automation : (

@Fabri 

Help links for using Excel in Zaps: https://zapier.com/apps/excel/help

The Zap trigger behavior may depend on how your Excel file is formatted. (e.g. headers, etc.)

 

Perhaps try using Airtable instead: https://zapier.com/apps/airtable/integrations#triggers-and-actions

Hi @Fabri 👋

Were you able to get the Zap triggering consistently using those help guides Troy shared here?

If not, did you make any changes to the spreadsheet while the Zap was switched on? Like adding columns, deleting rows etc before you added the new rows? We see similar issues with the Google Sheets app where those types of structural changes can cause a disconnect with the Zap so it could be that’s also the case for the Excel app too. In those cases it’s recommended to turn the Zap off before you make the changes then turn it back on again once you’ve finished.

After it failed to add the rows did you turn the Zap off and on again before adding formulas to additional rows? If yes, then that could be why it was then able to trigger as it would have refreshed the connection and considered the formulas as being new values in each row. 

If that’s not the case please let us know and we can help further - keen to ensure everything is working correctly! 🙂

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