Rote Workspace or Power Query?
Both repeat the same cleanup on next week's file. They suit different jobs. Here is how they differ, so you can pick the one that fits yours.
Processed locally in your browser. File contents are not uploaded. No account needed.
Side by side
| Feature | Power Query | Rote Workspace |
|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | Inside Excel and Power BI | In a web browser; nothing to install |
| How you build the steps | Applied Steps in the Power Query Editor, written in the M formula language underneath | Steps picked from menus; every change is previewed before anything is written |
| Next week's file | Refresh the query | Open the file, import or pick the saved workflow, run it |
| A column was renamed | The refresh stops with an error naming the column | Checked before anything runs: it names the column and the step it breaks, and changes nothing |
| Output | A table in the workbook or the data model; save the sheet as CSV from Excel | A UTF-8 CSV download, optionally Excel-friendly (with BOM) |
| Combining files | Append and merge (join) queries, or combine a whole folder of files at once | Append 2 or 3 files by column name; compare two files by key. No join. |
| File size | Large data, within Excel's and your machine's limits | CSV up to 50 MB, Excel .xlsx up to 10 MB |
| Price | Included with Excel | Free, no account |
Which one to use
Power Query, when
- the result belongs in an Excel workbook, a pivot table or a Power BI model;
- you need to join tables by a key, group or pivot;
- you combine a whole folder of files at once, or pull data from a database or another source;
- you already work in Excel every day and are at home in its editor.
Rote Workspace, when
- you want a clean CSV back, not a workbook;
- you cannot install anything, or do not have Excel to hand;
- you want to see every change before it happens, and be told plainly when next week's columns differ.