How to Open an .ods File (OpenDocument Spreadsheet) — Excel, OpenOffice, LibreOffice

I came across a file called name.ods and wondered: what do you open it with?

It turned out to be simple: .ods (OpenDocument Spreadsheet) is a spreadsheet in the open OpenDocument format. Such files are created by OpenOffice, LibreOffice, StarOffice and similar programs — it’s their counterpart of Excel’s .xls/.xlsx.

In short: .ods opens in the free OpenOffice or LibreOffice, as well as in Excel 2007 with Service Pack 2 and in Excel 2010 and later.

What opens .ods

• OpenOffice.org Calc — free; .ods is its native format.
• LibreOffice Calc — also free, a continuation of OpenOffice.
• Microsoft Excel 2010 — opens .ods out of the box.
• Microsoft Excel 2007 — opens it only with Service Pack 2 installed (SP1 doesn’t), tested. There’s no automatic file association, but you can set one: right-click the .ods file → Open with → Microsoft Office Excel and tick “Always use the selected program to open this kind of file”.
• Excel 2003 — needs the Sun ODF Plugin for Microsoft Office; even with the Office 2007 compatibility pack it won’t open this format.

If .ods won’t open in Office 2007

Install Office 2007 Service Pack 2 (or later) — that’s the update that added OpenDocument support.

How to save .ods as an Excel file

Open the file in OpenOffice/LibreOffice → File → Save As → file type “Microsoft Excel 97–2003 (.xls)” or “Excel 2007–2010 (.xlsx)”. Simple tables convert without problems; check complex formulas and formatting after saving.