How to Open Two Excel Files Side by Side in Separate Windows

When you open more than one file in Excel, they don’t all open in their own windows. Users can instead switch between them by clicking their thumbnail previews on the taskbar of Windows 10.

But some users might need to open two MS Excel files in separate windows so they can see their contents side by side.

Find out how to open two or more Excel files in different windows in the guides below.

Press the Shift Key to open multiple Excel files side by side

By holding down the Shift key, you can open more than one Excel window at once.

First, start up the Excel program. Then hold the Shift key, and click Excel’s taskbar icon.

That will open a new window for the app, which users can drag to either side of the desktop as described above.

Use the View Side by Side option

Open your MS Excel files.

Go to one of your files and on the View tab, select View Side-by-Side.

Choose the two files you opened.

Open two Excel windows and place them side by side

Open both your Excel files.

Drag one window to the left of the desktop to fill the left side.

Drag the other window to the right of the desktop to fill the right side.