How to Open BAK File in Excel?

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A BAK file, typically with a “.bak” extension, is a backup file that different software applications can create. The backup file stores a copy of a file or data in case the original is lost or corrupted.

One cannot open BAK files directly. To use a BAK file, you typically need to restore it using the software that created it. Sometimes, if you don’t have access to the software that made the BAK file, you can try opening it in Excel.

Please note that the ability to open a BAK file in Excel depends on several factors, including the application used to create the backup, the original data format, and the compatibility of the BAK file with Excel.

This tutorial explains four methods to open a BAK file in Excel.

Note: I recommend you back up the original BAK files before opening them in Excel to avoid data loss if the attempt fails.

Method #1: Open the BAK File Directly in Excel

Excel has native support for BAK files. Therefore, you can open BAK files directly in Excel.

You can use the following steps:

  1. Open a blank Excel file and click “File” to open the Backstage window.
Click the file tab
  1. To access the BAK file, click “Open,” on the left sidebar and select “Browse” from the right pane.
Click on browse
  1. Move to the folder where the BAK file is located. Open the file type drop-down at the bottom of the “Open” feature and choose “Backup Files (*.xlk, *.bak).” The BAK file will appear in the list area of the “Open” feature.
Select Backup file Option from drop down
  1. Select the BAK file and click “Open.”
Select the BAK file to open
  1. Click “Yes” on the warning message box.
Click on Yes

Note: The warning message only appears if Excel detects a discrepancy between the file extension and the actual file format or content. However, if the BAK file was created in a text editor like Notepad, Excel launches the “Text Import Wizard.”

Excel opens the file if it can resolve file format and extension mismatch. If not, try the following methods.

Also read: How to Open VCF File in Excel?

Method #2: Rename the File Extension to XLSX and Open the File in Excel

If a backup file (BAK) was created in Excel, it can be converted to Excel format by renaming the file extension to XLSX.

We use the following steps:

  1. Right-click the Windows Start button and click “File Explorer” on the context menu.
right-click on the Windows Start button
  1. On the “View” tab, select the “File name extensions” option on the “Show/Hide” group.
select the File name extensions option
  1. Move to the folder where the BAK file is stored. Right-click the file and choose “Rename” on the shortcut menu.
Click on the Rename option
  1. Highlight the “bak” extension and type “xlsx.”
Change file extension to xlsx
  1. Press Enter and click “Yes” on the warning message box.
Click on the Yes option
  1. Double-click the renamed file; the data will open in an Excel workbook.
Also read: How to Open an MPP file in Excel?

Method #3: Rename the File Extension to TXT and Import the File into Excel

If a backup file (BAK) was created in a text editor like Notepad, it can be converted back to a text file by renaming the file extension to TXT and importing it into Excel.

We use the below steps:

  1. Right-click the Windows Start button and click “File Explorer” on the context menu.
right-click on the Windows Start button
  1. On the “View” tab, select the “File name extensions” option on the “Show/Hide” group.
select the File name extensions option
  1. Move to the folder where the BAK file is stored. Right-click the file and choose “Rename” on the shortcut menu.
Right click and choose rename
  1. Highlight the “bak” extension and type “txt.”
Change extension to TXT
  1. Press Enter and click “Yes” on the warning message box.
Click on the Yes option
  1. Open a blank Excel file and click “File” to open the Backstage window.
Click the file tab
  1. Click “Open” on the left sidebar and “Browse” on the right pane.
Click on browse
  1. Navigate to the folder where the renamed file is located. Open the file type drop-down at the bottom of the “Open” feature and choose “Text Files (*.prn, *.txt, *.csv).” The renamed file will appear in the list area of the “Open” feature.
Select Text Files option from the drop down
  1. Select the text file and click “Open.”
Select file and click Open
  1.  On the “Text Import Wizard – Step 1 of 3” dialog box, look at the preview of the data on the preview area at the bottom of the dialog box. If you can see that the data has a header, select the “My data has headers” option and click “Next.”
Select My data has headers
  1.  Click “Next” on the “Text Import Wizard – Step 2 of 3” dialog box.
Click on Next
  1.  Click “Finish” on the “Text Import Wizard – Step 3 of 3” dialog box.
Click on Finish

The data is imported into the Excel file.

Also read: How to Open XML Files in Excel?

Method #4: Restore the BAK File in the Original Application and Export to Excel

If renaming BAK files to XLSX or TXT fails, restore in the original app and export to Excel.

For instance, in case Microsoft SQL Server generated the BAK file, first restore the backup in SQL Server and then export the data to Excel using the steps below:

  1. Launch the SQL Server Management Studio, and right-click the database where you want to restore the backup (BAK) data. Hover the mouse pointer over  “Tasks” on the context menu, hover over “Restore” on the sub-menu, and choose “Database” on the menu that appears.
right-click and select database
  1. Select the “From device” option, click the button with three dots, and click OK.
Select the From device option
  1. Click “Add” to specify the location of the BAK file, select it and click OK.
Locate the backup file
  1. On the options list, select “Full Database Backup” and “Transaction Log Backup,” when the restore process is completed, click OK.
select Full Database Backup and Transaction Log Backup
  1. Open the SQL Server Management Studio again and log in with your administrator account.
  2. Open the “Object Explorer,” right-click the database that you want to open in Excel, hover over “Tasks” on the context menu, and click “Export Data” on the sub-menu.
click Export Data on the sub-menu
  1. Choose the “SQL Server Import and Export Wizard” and click “Next.”
  2. On the “Choose a Data Source” section of the ” SQL Server Import and Export Wizard” dialog box, do the following:
    • Open the “Data source” drop-down and select “SQL Server Native Client 11.0.”
    • Open the “Server name” drop-down and choose the server containing the data to be exported.
    • Select the “Use Windows Authentication” option.
    • Open the “Database” drop-down, choose the file that was restored from the BAK file, and click “Next.”
choose the file that was restored from the BAK file
  1. On the “Choose a Destination” section of the “SQL Server Import and Export Wizard,” do the following:
    • Open the “Destination” drop-down and choose “Microsoft Excel.”
    • Click the “Browse” button and choose the destination folder to export the data.
    • Open the “Excel version” drop-down and select the version of the Excel you are using.
    • Select the “First row has column names” option and click “Next.”
select the version of the Excel you are using
  1.  On the “Specify Table Copy or Query” of the “SQL Server Import and Export Wizard,” select the “Copy data from one or more tables or views” option and click “Next.”
select the Copy data from one or more tables or views option
  1.  On the “Select Source Tables and Views” section of the “SQL Server Import and Export Wizard,” select the table containing the data you want to export and click “Next.”
select the table containing the data you want to export
  1.  On the “Save and Run Package” section of the “SQL Server Import and Export Wizard,” select the “Run immediately” option and click “Finish.”
select the Run immediately option
  1.  On the following window of the “SQL Server Import and Export Wizard,” open the “Report” drop-down at the bottom of the window and choose “Save Report to File,” choose Excel as the destination file.
choose Save Report to File

You will then be able to open the exported file in Excel.

This tutorial described four methods of opening BAK files in Excel. We hope you found the tutorial helpful.

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I am a huge fan of Microsoft Excel and love sharing my knowledge through articles and tutorials. I work as a business analyst and use Microsoft Excel extensively in my daily tasks. My aim is to help you unleash the full potential of Excel and become a data-slaying wizard yourself.

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