Read the summary and the details together
The overview answers how many records were added, removed, modified or unchanged in each sheet pair. The detail table answers what changed. Those counts describe different things and do not always add up to the same number.
Imagine a product with SKU 00123. Its price changes from 10 to 12 and its stock changes from 20 to 18. The summary counts one modified row. The detail report contains two modifications, one for Price and one for Stock. A count of two changes does not mean two products changed.
Added and removed records
An added record has a key present only in the updated version. A removed record has a key present only in the original. Their detail entries represent the whole row rather than one entry for every cell. Whole-sheet additions and removals are included too.
Before interpreting a large number of additions and removals, check your keys and sheet pairing. A changed identifier, a missing sheet pair or different key formatting can produce that pattern even when the business regards the records as the same.
Modified and unchanged rows
A matched row is modified when at least one compared value differs under the selected options. It is unchanged when none do. Column order does not matter: the tool uses header names. A newly named header is a different field, so renaming “Unit price” to “Price” can create apparent differences across many rows.
A text date is compared as text; a stored date value is compared as a date. Numeric values and text representations are different types for value comparison. Formula-text mode compares saved formulas, while ordinary mode uses saved values. No formulas are recalculated.
Do not skip the review flags
Missing-key and duplicate-key records are listed separately because the tool cannot pair them reliably. Review flags are not ordinary modifications, and their count is not a count of every affected record. Inspect the details, correct your copies or choose better keys, and run the comparison again.
The screen shows at most 200 review flags and paginates detailed changes in groups of 100. That keeps the page manageable. The downloadable report contains all records, including flags that are not displayed on the current screen.
Choose the right export
- Excel: three sheets containing the summary, detailed changes and records needing review.
- CSV: the changes table only, suitable for another system or a separate analysis.
- Printable report: an HTML file containing all three sections. Open it in your browser and use the browser’s print feature if you need a paper copy or PDF.
CSV output prefixes formula-like strings with an apostrophe to reduce the risk that a spreadsheet program executes them as formulas. That protection changes their literal exported representation. Keep it in mind if a downstream process compares the report text exactly.
Finish with a reconciliation
Check several known unchanged records, one known modification and any important added or removed record. Resolve the flagged groups. Keep the two source versions with the report so a colleague can reproduce the comparison. A report is useful evidence of a review, but it is not an independent audit or a guarantee that the original data was correct.