Many websites offer CSV downloads, but CSV files are cumbersome to open and often result in data errors. Most apps and online services don't have an option to download data in Excel format. It used to be difficult to build nicely-formatted Excel files for download. With the GoodGrids API, it is now simple.
You upload an Excel file that is formatted the way that you want your downloaded Excel spreadsheets to look. You'll get an API that you can plug into your app and in no time you can give your users beautiful Excel spreadsheets.
After downloading your CSV, most of your user will open it in Excel. Sometimes, they will just take a quick peak at it. Often, they will take some of the data, discard some, fix any conversion errors, and format it nicely.
When Excel opens CSV files, it often makes assumptions that are not correct. This results in international characters turning into gibberish, dates becoming formatted in funny ways, and numbers showing strangely. It will be frustrating, time consuming, and sometimes not even possible to fix these issues.
If your web application or service offers CSV file downloads, you should also let your users download Excel files. It is good to offer Excel downloads to give users properly-formatted files that are pleasant to look at and reflect the branding and professionalism of your app or service. It saves your users time and frustration.