How to plan and create automated Excel reports with monday.com

Learn how to automate monday.com reporting and export board data to Excel using reusable spreadsheet templates, formulas, and automation workflows with Spreadsheet Gorilla for monday.com

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monday.com is great for managing work, but reporting can quickly become time consuming when your boards grow. You may need weekly project updates, monthly management reports, client progress summaries, sales pipeline reports, budget overviews, operational KPI reports, or internal performance snapshots. In many cases, the data already exists in monday.com, but it is spread across boards, columns, statuses, timelines, owners, and updates.

The challenge is turning that board data into a report that people can actually use.

A good automated report should not simply copy your monday.com board into Excel. It should answer a clear question, include the right data, remove unnecessary details, and follow a reusable structure. In this guide, we explain how to plan and create automated reports from monday.com board data, how to structure your reports, and when Spreadsheet Gorilla for monday.com can help you turn your boards into reusable Excel report templates.

TL;DR

Can you create automated Excel reports with monday.com?

Yes, you can create automated reports in monday.com, but the best setup depends on what kind of report you need. For simple reporting, a monday.com board view or one time export may be enough. For recurring spreadsheet based reports, you need a more structured workflow. That usually means defining the report goal, choosing the right boards and columns, applying filters, adding formulas, and using a reusable report template.

Step 1: Report goal

Define the report goal

The first step is deciding what the report should explain. This sounds simple, but it is where many reporting workflows go wrong. Teams often start by exporting everything from a board and then cleaning it up afterwards. That creates long spreadsheets, unnecessary columns, and reports that are difficult to read. Start with the question the report should answer:

  • Which projects are currently at risk?
  • What was completed this week?
  • Which sales opportunities are expected to close this month?
  • Which invoices are still unpaid?
  • How much budget has been used?
  • Which tasks are overdue?
  • What work is assigned to each team member?
  • What progress should a client see this month?

Did you know?

Once the goal is clear, it becomes easier to decide which boards, columns, filters, and formulas belong in the report. A useful report should help the reader make a decision, understand progress, or take action.

Step 2: Board selection

Choose the boards that feed the report

Next, decide which monday.com boards contain the data needed for the report. Some reports only need one board. Others need information from several boards.

One board reports

A one board report works well when all relevant data is already stored in one place, examples include:

  • A project report from one project board.
  • A task report from one team board.
  • A pipeline report from one sales board.
  • A ticket report from one support board.
  • A budget report from one finance board.

This is usually the simplest and most straightforward reporting setup.

Multi board reports

A multi board report is useful when your reporting data is spread across several areas of monday.com, examples include:

  • A client report that uses data from project boards and support boards.
  • A management report that combines tasks, budgets, and milestones.
  • A sales report that combines leads, opportunities, and accounts.
  • A finance report that combines invoices, clients, and payment status.
  • A portfolio report that combines several project boards.

When you use multiple boards, the report structure becomes more important. You need to decide how the data should be organized so the final spreadsheet remains readable.

Step 3: Column selection

Choose the columns that belong in the report

Your monday.com boards often contain more columns than a report needs. And your board may include internal workflow columns, automation helper columns, technical fields, internal notes, operational statuses, or temporary planning fields. These may be useful for managing work, but they do not always belong in a report.

Did you know?

Choose only the columns that help the reader understand the topic. A clean report is usually more useful than a complete export.

Step 4: Item filtering

Filter the report data

A report should rarely include every item from a board. Filters help you include only the data that matches the purpose of the report. For example, you may want to include:

  • Only active projects.
  • Only completed tasks.
  • Only overdue items.
  • Only high priority items.
  • Only items assigned to a specific team.
  • Only items for one client.
  • Only items from this month.
  • Only invoices waiting for payment.
  • Only opportunities in a selected sales stage.
  • Only projects with a risk status.

Did you know?

Filtering keeps the report focused. It also makes the final spreadsheet easier to read, especially when the source board contains hundreds or thousands of items. But be aware that a small filter mistake can exclude important information or include items that do not belong in the report.

Step 5: Excel structure

Decide the spreadsheet structure

A board is designed for managing work. A report is designed for reading, reviewing, and decision making. That means the exported Excel spreadsheet should not always follow the exact structure of the monday.com board. Think about how the reader should experience the report.

Option 1: One worksheet for all data

This works well for simple reports. Use one worksheet when the report is short, focused, and easy to understand without additional organization.

Option 2: Separate worksheets by category

This works well when the report includes different types of information. You could create separate worksheets for Projects, Tasks, Clients, Invoices, Risks, Completed work, Open items, or Summary data.

Option 3: Summary first, details second

This is often the best structure for management reports. The first worksheet gives a summary. Later worksheets provide the supporting details, for example:

  • Worksheet 1: Executive summary
  • Worksheet 2: Project status
  • Worksheet 3: Overdue items
  • Worksheet 4: Budget details
  • Worksheet 5: Raw data

Option 4: One worksheet per client or department

This is useful when different audiences need separate sections. For example, a monthly client reporting file could include one worksheet per client, while an internal operations report could include one worksheet per department. The goal is to make the report easier to read than the original board.

Step 6: Calculated insights

Add formulas and calculated values

Reports often need calculations from across different boards that are not directly visible in monday.com. Formulas help turn board data into reporting insights, common examples include:

  • Total and remaining budget
  • Difference between planned and actual values
  • Completion rate and average time to completion
  • Percentage of work completed
  • Number of overdue items and risk score
  • Sales pipeline value and revenue by client
  • Monthly and year to date totals

Did you know?

These calculations help the report answer questions instead of only listing raw data. But make sure they continue to work when new items are added, columns are empty, or values change.

Step 7: Reusable template

Build a reusable spreadsheet template

Once the report goal, boards, columns, filters, structure, and formulas are clear, the next step is building a reusable template. A reusable template saves time because you do not need to rebuild the same Excel file every week or month. Instead of repeating this manual process, you define the report structure once and generate a consistent report on demand. A template is useful when:

  • The same report is needed regularly.
  • The report should use a consistent format.
  • Several people rely on the same reporting structure.
  • The report should include selected monday.com columns.
  • The report should include calculated insights from formulas.
  • The report should combine data from multiple boards.
  • The report should be easier to read than a standard board export.

Ready to export board reports with automations?

Learn more about how you and your team can benefit from Spreadsheet Gorilla for monday.com to create tailored and consistent Excel reports sent right into any email inbox on auto-pilot.

Step 8: Testing

Preview and test the Excel report

Before using a report in a real workflow, test it. Do not only check whether the file generates. Check whether the report is actually useful, use this checklist:

  • Does the report answer the original question?
  • Are the right boards included?
  • Are unnecessary columns removed?
  • Are the filters correct?
  • Are the worksheets easy to understand?
  • Are formulas calculating correctly?
  • Are empty values handled properly?
  • Is the report readable for someone who does not work inside the board every day?
  • Would a client, manager, or stakeholder understand the report without extra explanation?
  • Is the file small enough and practical to use?

Testing is especially important before automating a report. Once a report runs automatically, small mistakes can repeat every time the workflow runs.

Step 9: Report usage

Decide how the report should be used

After the report structure works, decide how the report should be used. Different teams use automated reports in different ways, common options include:

  • Downloading the report manually when needed
  • Saving a monthly copy for internal records
  • Reviewing the report in a management meeting
  • Using the report as a finance or operations input
  • Sharing the report with a client
  • Sending the report to stakeholders
  • Creating a recurring reporting workflow

This article focuses on how to design and build the report itself. If you want the finished Excel report to be emailed automatically on a schedule, read the dedicated guide: How do I email Excel reports with automations on monday.com?

Benefits

Why automated report templates are better than one time exports

One time exports are useful when you only need a quick copy of board data. Automated report templates are better when reporting is part of a repeated process.

  • Every report follows the same layout. This makes it easier to compare reports over time and reduces confusion for recurring recipients.

  • A template lets you remove unnecessary board columns and organize the remaining data around the reader’s needs. The result is a cleaner report rather than a direct copy of your monday.com board.

  • Without a template, someone often needs to export data, delete columns, rearrange rows, add formulas, and save the file manually. A reusable template reduces that repetitive work.

  • Templates let you apply filters, formulas, and structure intentionally. This helps the report communicate the right information instead of simply listing all available board data.

  • One manual spreadsheet may be manageable. Several recurring reports across clients, teams, boards, and departments can quickly become difficult to maintain without a template based workflow.

Examples

Examples of automated reports you can create from monday.com

Automated reporting can support many different teams and workflows.

  • Show active projects, current status, owners, deadlines, risks, blockers, and upcoming milestones. This is useful for project managers, team leads, and stakeholders who need a regular progress update.

  • Summarize key activity across teams or departments. This might include completed work, overdue items, budget figures, resource usage, and high level KPIs.

  • Create a client report that shows only the information relevant to a specific client. This can include deliverables, deadlines, completed tasks, open requests, and next steps.

  • Summarize opportunities by stage, owner, value, expected close date, and status. This helps sales managers review pipeline health without manually cleaning exports.

  • Report on invoices, payment status, budgets, actual costs, and monthly totals. This is useful when finance teams need monday.com data in spreadsheet form.

  • Track operational metrics such as open work, completed work, turnaround time, backlog, workload, or priority items.

  • Show work assigned by person, team, project, timeline, or capacity. This can help managers understand upcoming workload and staffing needs.

  • Show only items marked as delayed, blocked, high risk, or requiring escalation. This keeps the report focused on what needs attention.

Common mistakes

Common mistakes when creating automated monday.com reports

Automated reporting works best when the report is designed intentionally, so avoid these common mistakes:

  • More data does not always make a better report. If the reader only needs ten columns, do not include thirty. If the report only needs this month’s items, do not include the full board history.

  • Boards are usually designed for work management. Reports should be designed for communication, review, and decision making. The best report layout may be different from the board layout.

  • A report for an internal project manager can include operational detail. A report for a client or executive should usually be cleaner, shorter, and easier to scan. Define the audience before finalizing the report structure.

  • Without filters, reports often become too large and unfocused. Use filters to include only the items that match the reporting goal.

  • Many boards include internal workflow columns that external readers do not need. Remove columns that are only useful to your team’s internal process.

  • Formulas should be tested before reports are reused or automated. A formula error can create incorrect numbers every time the report is generated.

  • If your team creates the same report again and again, it should probably become a template. Repeated manual spreadsheet work is a sign that the reporting workflow can be improved.

  • Boards, workflows, and stakeholders change. Review report templates regularly to make sure they still match the way your team works.

Questions & Answers

Frequently asked questions about automated reporting with monday.com

  • Yes. monday.com can support reporting through board views, filters, exports, and automations. For structured Excel reports, many teams use Spreadsheet Gorilla to turn monday.com board data into reusable spreadsheet templates.

  • Yes. monday.com board data can be used to create Excel reports. For simple needs, a one time export may be enough. For reusable report structures, templates, filters, formulas, or multiple boards, Spreadsheet Gorilla is a better fit.

  • A board export copies board data into a spreadsheet. A report template defines how that data should be selected, organized, filtered, calculated, and presented every time the report is generated.

  • Yes. This is useful when the report needs data from several workflows, such as projects, clients, sales, finance, operations, or support. Spreadsheet Gorilla can help create spreadsheet reports based on one or more monday.com boards.

  • Yes. Filtering is one of the most important parts of a good report. Filters help include only the items that match the report goal, such as active projects, overdue tasks, completed work, selected clients, or items from a specific time period.

  • Yes. Spreadsheet based reports can use formulas to calculate totals, percentages, variances, counts, and other reporting values. This helps turn raw board data into more useful reporting insights.

  • Usually, no. A report should include the columns the reader needs. Internal workflow columns, helper columns, and unnecessary operational details should usually be removed.

  • Yes. Spreadsheet Gorilla can be used with monday.com automations for email based reporting workflows. For the detailed setup, read the dedicated guide on emailing Excel reports with monday.com automations.

  • Manual exports are useful for occasional downloads. Spreadsheet Gorilla is better when you need reusable report templates, selected columns, filters, formulas, multiple boards, and a cleaner Excel structure.

Conclusion

Create reusable Excel reports from monday.com board data

The monday.com workspace gives teams a flexible place to manage work. But reporting often needs a different structure than the board itself. A useful report should be focused, readable, consistent, and easy to reuse. Spreadsheet Gorilla helps you turn monday.com board data into structured Excel report templates with selected columns, filters, formulas, worksheets, and reusable report layouts. Use it when you want to spend less time cleaning spreadsheets and more time using the reports.

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