Forum Discussion
Excel wants me to use Copilot, but then declines to function
I'm confused. There's a ton of hype around AI assistants. I've noticed in my Excel that every single time I click in a cell, a prompt tag appears above the cell to get me to try Copilot.
I've been ignoring it but I finally decided to give it a try, and it failed. I entered my question and it basically said it doesn't work yet?
As a Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscriber, you'll be able to use Copilot when you're signed with your Microsoft work or school account (Entra ID) and Microsoft personal account. However, that ability is not yet available.
- Why is Excel literally ALWAYS prompting me to try something that doesn't work?
- I assume there's a configuration option somewhere to disable the Copilot tag prompt on every cell. I'm not asking for help in finding that option. I do not want help finding that option.
- The error message indicates the requirement that I must be signed in with a "work" or "school" account in addition to my personal account. Then it says "that ability is not yet available." Which ability? The ability for Copilot to work? Or the ability to be signed into a personal and work account simultaneously?
- How will I know if or when "that ability is not yet available" is no longer true? How will I know when I should try Copilot again?
- In my decades of experience with IT, it's not uncommon for error messages to be wrong, or at least misleading. Is this one of those situations? Is the message correct and I just need to wait an indeterminate time for some indeterminate party to add or enable some indeterminate function somewhere within Microsoft software or services? Or is that message inaccurate, and to enable Copilot, I actually need to do something on my end that's not being mentioned here?
High level, I'm annoyed that MS is pushing something that it then can't (or won't?) deliver. I expect more from MS.
1 Reply
- Marcus-Apps4rentCopper Contributor
Totally get where you’re coming from, it’s frustrating to be constantly prompted to try a feature that just doesn’t work yet. Right now, Copilot in Excel is only supported for Microsoft 365 work or school accounts with the right license, like Business Standard or E5 with Copilot. If you’re using a Personal or Family subscription, it won’t work yet, even if the prompt keeps showing.
The message you’re seeing is basically saying the feature isn’t available for your type of account setup, and unfortunately, there’s nothing you can do on your end until Microsoft finishes rolling it out. The confusing wording doesn’t help, but it’s not an error on your part, it’s just not fully live for everyone. If you're curious when it becomes available, Microsoft usually announces changes through their roadmap or in-app updates.