Microsoft Excel TestBasic, Intermediate, Advanced and Expert levels
A pre-employment skills assessment that measures genuine working ability in Microsoft Excel — not self-reported confidence. Choose the single level that matches the role, or test a candidate across all four and determine their level of proficiency. Levels combine simulated Excel tasks and multiple-choice questions, from basic formulas through advanced pivot tables and VLOOKUP, so you can confidently match a candidate's real skill level to the role.
Excel remains the industry standard for spreadsheet work
Excel is available across Windows, macOS, iOS and Android, and now built into Microsoft 365 for browser-based use as well. It is one of the most commonly tested skills in pre-employment screening in Australia, and business people at every level rely on it for analysing numbers, managing budgets, forecasting financial outcomes and modelling "what-if" scenarios.
A number of key reasons for its popularity include its wide availability, its compatibility with all major operating systems, and the fact that it requires no additional software investment beyond a standard Microsoft 365 licence. Small businesses use Excel to track inventory in simple tables, while larger organisations use it to build complex financial and analytical models.
In short, at least basic knowledge of how to use Microsoft Excel is a must in the contemporary Australian workplace, which is why a pre-employment Excel test is one of the most requested skills tests for hiring in administration, finance and analytical roles. Our organisational psychologists built this assessment around the Excel skillset used in Microsoft 365, the standard in workplaces today, and keep it current as Excel's toolset evolves.
Basic Microsoft Excel Test
RightPeople's Basic Microsoft Excel Test evaluates the standard Excel fundamentals, establishing whether a candidate is a genuine beginner or already has basic working competence — and whether existing staff need introductory training before moving on to more advanced work.
The Ribbon
Candidates are tested on core Ribbon commands: copying and pasting data, formatting text, applying number formatting, inserting basic functions such as SUM, and changing page orientation.
Cells
Establishes whether a candidate understands how data, formulas and formatting live within the row-and-column structure of a worksheet — the foundation everything else in Excel builds on.
Search Functionality
Evaluates whether a candidate can use Find and Replace to locate and update text and numbers within a worksheet — essential when Excel is used as a data repository.
Functions
Assesses comfort with SUM, AVERAGE, MIN, MAX and COUNT — the core functions a basic Excel user should be able to apply without assistance.
Sorting
Checks whether a candidate can sort numbers and text in ascending and descending order — a foundational skill for organising and summarising data.
Intermediate Microsoft Excel Test
RightPeople's Intermediate Microsoft Excel Test was developed to assess a candidate's knowledge of formulas and functions, their ability to apply that knowledge to standard work-related queries, and their ability to display and interpret data visually.
Charts
An intermediate user should be able to arrange input data for bar, pie and column charts and format them appropriately. The test uses real-world examples to assess both practical and theoretical chart-creation ability.
Functions
Candidates are assessed on basic maths functions, financial functions, lookup and reference functions, logical functions and statistical functions, through work-related spreadsheet tasks.
Data Analysis
Measures a candidate's ability to look at the numbers, charts and results in a spreadsheet and draw meaningful, decision-useful insight from them.
Cloud Computing and Office 365
Assesses a candidate's ability to work effectively in cloud-based spreadsheet environments, where multiple people collaborate on the same file and data is held centrally.
Advanced Microsoft Excel Test
RightPeople's Advanced Microsoft Excel Test assesses whether a candidate can build their own solutions to complex, quantitative work problems rather than relying on someone else to build tools for them. An advanced Excel user is a genuine asset to an organisation. The test was developed to assess whether a candidate can:
- Build complex formulas to solve challenging, quantitative work problems
- Use VLOOKUP, XLOOKUP, INDEX and MATCH — including in combination — plus INDIRECT and SUMPRODUCT
- Use Excel's TEXT functions to extract and manipulate data
- Manipulate dates and times using the DATE functions
- Build clear, visually effective spreadsheets through considered formatting
- Create Excel tables and work with structured references
- Build and extensively format a wide variety of chart types
- Apply conditional formatting, including formula-driven rules
- Filter data using Excel's Advanced Filter
- Apply and create custom number formats
- Use Data Validation to control and limit data entry
- Build Pivot Tables and Pivot Charts, including calculated fields, slicers and the timeline slicer
- Produce Pivot Table reports
- Use Data Tables, Scenario Manager and the Solver Add-in
- Load and use the Analysis ToolPak
- Use AutoFill and Flash Fill, and apply protection to workbooks and worksheets
Expert Microsoft Excel Test
RightPeople's Expert Microsoft Excel Test assesses a candidate's ability to extend and automate Excel itself, moving beyond applying existing features. Expert users are typically the people a business relies on to build the tools others use. The test was developed to assess whether a candidate can:
- Install, configure and work confidently with Excel Add-Ins
- Record and write Macros, and use VBA to automate complex tasks
- Build and format advanced charts and graphics for reporting
- Customise the Excel environment to suit a specific workflow
- Work fluently in Excel for the Web, including collaboration features
- Collaborate on live, shared spreadsheets with other users in real time
- Build complex, nested formulas drawing on multiple data sources
- Design and maintain sophisticated Pivot Table structures for ongoing reporting
Common questions about the Microsoft Excel test
Can't find what you're looking for? Contact our team or visit our full FAQ page.
What does the Microsoft Excel test measure?
RightPeople's Microsoft Excel test measures a candidate's genuine, practical working ability in Excel — not self-reported confidence or resume claims. It covers formulas and functions, formatting, charts and pivot tables, data analysis and (at the advanced and expert levels) macros and automation, matched to the specific level of the role being filled.
What are the four levels of the Excel test, and how do I choose one?
The test has four levels — Basic, Intermediate, Advanced and Expert — each assessing a progressively deeper set of Excel skills, from core formulas through to macros, VBA and complex Pivot Table structures. Choose the level that matches the Excel demands of the role itself, not the candidate's stated experience; our team can help you match a level to a role description.
Is the Microsoft Excel test completed online?
Yes. Like all RightPeople assessments, the Excel test is completed online, combining hands-on tasks in a simulated Excel environment with multiple-choice questions that test knowledge and judgement. No special software or in-person testing is required, and results are available to the employer typically the same day.
How does RightPeople protect the integrity of the Excel test?
RightPeople uses AI proctoring technology to protect the integrity of every online Excel test. The proctoring runs in the background while the candidate completes the assessment, and any irregularities are flagged in the report for the employer to review. This gives you confidence that the result reflects the candidate's own Excel ability.
What roles use the Microsoft Excel test?
The Excel test suits any role where spreadsheet competency affects performance, commonly finance, administration, operations, data analysis and reporting roles across Australian organisations. The right level depends on the role: Basic for data-entry and administrative positions, through to Expert for analysts and finance professionals who build and automate spreadsheet tools for others.
What other Microsoft Office skills tests does RightPeople offer?
Alongside Microsoft Excel, RightPeople offers pre-employment skills tests for Microsoft Word, PowerPoint and Outlook, each covering a range of difficulty levels. All are built and reviewed by our organisational psychologists and delivered through the same simulated online testing environment.
Ready to test Excel skills with confidence?
Speak with our team to match the right level of Excel test to your role, or request a quote to get started.
