Filozy

Four-step reporting workflow

Turn a spreadsheet into a report to circulate

A workbook becomes a fixed document that looks the same for everyone, with a running header, page numbers, and a password if only the people you choose should read it.

By the Filozy team, with AI assistance Reviewed How we write and review

One file · 4 connected steps

Start the workflow here

Choose the PDF once. Each completed step passes it directly to the next tool on this device.

The whole job, visible up front

What will happen

  1. 01

    Convert the workbook

    Lay out each visible sheet as pages, showing the values Excel last calculated.

    Open Excel to PDF by itself
  2. 02

    Add a header

    Type the report name in the Header box, with {date} where today's date should go.

    Open Header, footer & Bates by itself
  3. 03

    Number the pages

    Make it possible to refer to a page in a meeting.

    Open Page numbers by itself
  4. 04

    Protect

    Set a password to open it, if only the people you give it to should read the figures.

    Open Protect by itself

Common questions

Will my formulas, charts and pictures come through?
The results of formulas will. Excel stores the last value it calculated in the file, and that value is shown with the cell's currency symbol, decimals or percentage, though dates are always written year-month-day, such as 2026-03-15. Nothing is recalculated, so save the workbook in Excel after your last change. Charts and images are not carried over yet, and the result notes that they were left out. The workbook has to be an .xlsx file; save an older .xls as .xlsx first.
How will a wide sheet fit on the pages?
Pages are A4, landscape unless the sheet's page setup in Excel says portrait, and columns keep the widths set in the sheet. A sheet too wide for the page continues on further pages in bands of columns, each headed with the sheet name and its column range, and rows frozen at the top in Excel repeat at the top of every page. Excel's print area and fit-to-page settings are not applied, so narrow the columns before converting if you want fewer pages.
Will hidden sheets or rows show up in the report?
Hidden sheets are left out, and so are rows hidden in Excel. Rows and columns hidden in LibreOffice can still print, and what is in a hidden column can still show. For anything that must not be circulated, delete it from a copy of the workbook rather than hiding it, and convert that copy.
How do I put the report name and date on every page?
In the header step, type the name in the Header box and add {date} where the date should go, for example Q3 sales review · {date}; it is replaced with today's date. The page-number step then adds a number in the bottom-right corner. Type Page in its Prefix box to print Page 1, Page 2 and so on.
Does a password stop the report being forwarded?
No. The password to open the file encrypts it, so only people who know the password can read it, but anyone who has both the file and the password can pass both on. The Allow boxes for printing, copying text and editing are only requests: the password you set also counts as the permissions password, so a reader that follows the PDF standard gives full access to anyone who opens the file with it, and other readers ignore them. Choose who gets the password with that in mind, and send it separately from the file.