Why didn’t Microsoft Excel add this new feature sooner?

What you need to know

• Microsoft Excel will soon support placing images within cells.
• The option will allow users to move, resize, sort, and filter images alongside cells containing other types of content.
• Microsoft could ship the feature as soon as December 2022, but that date is subject to change.

Microsoft is working on the ability to place images directly within the cells of an Excel spreadsheet. The feature would allow users to move and resize cells containing images. It would also let people sort and filter cells with photos alongside cells containing other types of content.

“Your pictures can now be part of the worksheet, instead of floating on top. You can move and resize cells, sort and filter, and work with pictures within an Excel table,” reads the Microsoft 365 Roadmap entry (opens in new tab) for the feature (via TechRadar).

At the moment, Excel only allows images to be placed above cells. As a result, photographs merely float above spreadsheets. This can make it difficult to format spreadsheets with several photos. It can also make it hard to organize a picture within a group of cells. Being able to place photos within cells could be used to place charts, graphs, and other content.

The ability to place images within the cells of spreadsheets could arrive as soon as next month, but that date is subject to change. The Microsoft 365 Roadmap provides a rough outline for features, not strict release dates.

When the feature does ship, it will be available on Excel for the web as well as on Android, Windows, and macOS. The Microsoft 365 Roadmap does not mention the ability to place images within cells for Excel for iOS.