Microsoft Excel is an electronic spreadsheet used to manipulate numerical data with formulas and functions. It allows users to perform tasks like preparing monthly sales reports, making loan payment schedules, and more. Excel has rows, columns, cells and allows for formatting of text, numbers, dates, as well as inserting charts, pictures, and other visual elements. Formulas can be used to perform calculations on worksheet data by using functions like SUM, AVERAGE, and more. Workbooks can be saved, protected with passwords, and files can be inserted, deleted or renamed.