Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets, and Smartsheet support traditional spreadsheet formulas. Coda tables also support formulas, while Coda grids do not. Airtable, Notion, and monday.com provide calculated fields or formula columns, but these work differently from unrestricted cell-by-cell spreadsheet formulas.
Spreadsheet Grid Formula Support at a Glance
| Product or grid type | Formula support | Uses cell references such as A1? |
Supports cross-row or range calculations? | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Excel | Full spreadsheet formulas | Yes | Yes | Financial models, analysis, and large workbooks |
| Google Sheets | Full spreadsheet formulas | Yes | Yes | Collaborative online spreadsheets |
| Smartsheet | Cell and column formulas | Yes, with Smartsheet syntax | Yes, including ranges and cross-sheet formulas | Project, operations, and workflow tracking |
| Coda tables | Table and row formulas | No, generally uses table references | Yes, through table formulas and lists | Connected documents and custom workflows |
| Airtable grid view | Formula fields | No, uses field names | Limited compared with spreadsheets | Database-style records with calculated fields |
| Notion table or database view | Formula properties | No, uses database properties | Limited, with relations and rollups | Lightweight databases and project tracking |
| monday.com boards | Formula columns | No, uses column names | Mostly no vertical calculations | Per-item calculations on work-management boards |
Which Grids Support Normal Spreadsheet Formulas?
Microsoft Excel
Excel supports the broadest traditional spreadsheet formula model. You can enter formulas directly into cells, reference individual cells or ranges, copy formulas across rows and columns, and link to other worksheets or workbooks.
Examples include:
=SUM(A1:A10)
=IF(B2>100,"Over budget","Within budget")
=XLOOKUP(E2,A:A,B:B)
Excel supports relative, absolute, and mixed references, including A1, $A$1, and A$1.
Google Sheets
Google Sheets supports traditional cell formulas and functions. You can enter a formula into a cell, select ranges while editing, use nested functions, and reference other cells. Common functions include SUM, IF, FILTER, QUERY, and ARRAYFORMULA.
Google Sheets is a practical choice when several people need to edit the same spreadsheet online. It does not support every Excel function, though. Some Excel-specific functions, including certain CUBE functions, WEBSERVICE, and RTD, are unavailable.
Smartsheet
Smartsheet supports cell formulas, functions, ranges, column formulas, and cross-sheet formulas. You can enter a formula in a cell, copy it down a column, or apply it consistently across a column. Supported functions include SUM, AVG, IF, and VLOOKUP.
Smartsheet is designed more for project and operations data than for highly flexible financial modelling. You cannot enter formulas directly into forms, reports, dashboards, or update requests, although those features can display formula results.
Which Spreadsheet-Like Grids Support Calculated Fields?
Coda Tables Support Formulas, but Coda Grids Do Not
This distinction matters.
Coda tables support formulas, filtering, sorting, summaries, and references across structured data. Coda grids are intended for unstructured information and do not provide the formula features available in tables.
Use a Coda table when you need calculated columns, row references, or connected data. A Coda grid is not the right choice for spreadsheet calculations.
Airtable Supports Formula Fields
Airtable supports formulas through a dedicated Formula field. Airtable formulas use field names rather than spreadsheet cell coordinates. Examples include:
Price * Quantity
and:
MIN({Regular Price}, {Sale Price})
This works well for calculating values within individual records. Airtable is not a direct replacement for Excel or Google Sheets when you need arbitrary references such as A1, B2:C20, or a free-form matrix of calculations.
Notion Supports Formula Properties
Notion supports formulas as database properties. A formula can calculate a value from other properties in the same database row, such as a total price, deadline status, or text label. Notion formulas use property names and Notion's formula language rather than A1-style references.
Notion also supports relations and rollups, which can bring information from connected databases into calculations. Formula properties apply across a database property, rather than behaving like individually editable spreadsheet cells.
monday.com Supports Formula Columns
monday.com supports formulas through a Formula Column. Formula columns can calculate values using other columns on the same item. For example:
IF({Spent}>{Budget},"Over budget","Under budget")
monday.com formulas support column types such as numbers, dates, status, text, people, and time tracking. However, formula columns calculate horizontally at the item level. They cannot perform the same vertical, whole-column calculations as Excel, such as summing values from multiple items within one formula.
Which Grid Should You Choose?
Choose Excel for complex models, extensive functions, and workbook-level references.
Choose Google Sheets for traditional formulas with real-time collaboration and browser access.
Choose Smartsheet for formulas within project, resource, or operations sheets, including column formulas and cross-sheet references.
Choose Coda tables for formulas inside a connected document. Use a table, not a grid, when calculations are required.
Choose Airtable, Notion, or monday.com when you need calculated fields for records, tasks, or projects rather than a fully flexible spreadsheet model.
Bottom Line
For formulas that use references such as =SUM(A1:A10), use Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets, or Smartsheet.
For record-based calculations, use Airtable, Notion, or monday.com.
For Coda, choose a table when formulas are needed.