How to Save an Excel Table as Image?

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While Excel is the primary choice when it comes to analyzing data, a lot of reporting is still done with other tools such as Microsoft PowerPoint or Word.

This also means that a lot of times you have to put the data from an Excel worksheet into these other tools.

In such scenarios, you may have a need to convert your Excel tables into images so that you can simply copy and paste those images into these reporting tools.

While there is an inbuilt method to save Excel charts as images, unfortunately, there is no inbuilt way to save an Excel table as an image.

But it’s really easy to do.

In this tutorial, I will show you how to convert an Excel table into an image using multiple different methods.

Copy the Table and Paste as a Picture within the Worksheet

Not many people know this, but there is a feature in Excel that allows you to select any range of cells and quickly convert these into an image (right there within the worksheet)

And once you have this image, you can save it on your system or directly copy and paste it into tools such as MS PowerPoint or MS Word.

Let me show you how to do this.

Suppose you have a data set as shown below where you want to create an image of this table:

Excel table to be saved as image

Below are the steps to save this table as an image:

  1. Select the data set that you want to convert into an imageSelect the table
  2. Copy this data. You can right-click on any of the cells and then click on the copy option or you can use the keyboard shortcut Control CRight click and select copy
  3. Click anywhere else in the worksheet
  4. Click the Home tabClick the Home tab
  5. In the Clipboard option, click on the drop-down icon in the Paste option (the downward pointing arrow at the bottom)Click on the Paste option
  6. In the options that show up, click on the Picture optionPaste as a picture

That’s it!

This will convert your selected data range into an image, and place that image right there in the worksheet.

Image of the Table within the worksheet

If you want to put this image in PowerPoint or Microsoft Word, you can simply copy the image and paste it there (a simple Control-C and Control-V the operation).

Alternatively, you can right-click on the image and save it on your system (so that you can use it later).

Personally, I find this to be the fastest way to convert an Excel table (or any range of cells) into a picture.

When you’re done copy-pasting the image (or saving it on your system), just select it and hit the delete key to remove it.

In some cases, I find that this technique gives an image that sometimes doesn’t cover the entire table (or sometimes covers an area more than the table). this mostly happens when you’re running your screen at a resolution different than the recommended one. if this method doesn’t work for you you can use the next method

Copy the Table and Save it as an Image in PowerPoint/Word

If you want to copy a table from Excel and paste it as an image in Microsoft PowerPoint or Microsoft Word, there is another quick way to do this.

In this method, we would simply copy the data in Excel, and while pasting it in PowerPoint or Word, we would convert it into an image.

Below are the steps to do this:

  1. Select the range of cells in the table that you want to copy an image
  2. Copy the cells (use Control + C or Command + C, or right-click and then click on Copy)
  3. Open the PowerPoint slide (or MS Word page) where you want to paste this data as a picture
  4. Paste the copied table (use Control + V for Windows or Command + V for Mac). At this point, the Excel table is pasted as a table and not as an image.Data copied in PowerPoint
  5. Click on the based options icon that appears at the bottom right part of the table you just pasted.
  6. Click on the Picture (U) optionPaste table as a picture

The above steps would convert the table that you have pasted into an image.

And just like any image, you can crop this, resize it, and place this anywhere in your PowerPoint slide or your Word document page.

Also read: How to Download One Sheet From Excel?

Copy and Paste to MS Paint

Another popular way to save an Excel table as an image is by copying the table and simply pasting it in MS Paint (in Windows).

When you do this, MS Paint automatically converts your copied data into an image (retaining all the formatting and the colors)

Below are the steps to save an Excel table as an image:

  1. Select the range that you want to convert into an image
  2. Copy this data
  3. Open MS Paint (to do this simply type Ms paint in the search bar in the bottom-left part of your Windows system)
  4. Paste the image (you can use Control-V)
  5. Resize the image if you want
  6. Click the File option in MS PaintClick the File tab
  7. Click on Save As
  8. Choose the format in which you want to save the imageSave as Png or JPG
  9. Select the location on your system

This is again a really fast way to convert an Excel table into an image. A lot of people actually prefer this method as they are more comfortable using MS Paint.

note that while copying and pasting the range of cells from Excel into Ms paint converts it into an image, it will not work if you do the same with PowerPoint or MS Word.

When you copy a range of cells in Excel and paste it in PowerPoint/Word, it based that as a table and not as an image (but there is a way you can convert that table into an image right within PowerPoint/Word).

Let’s see how to do this.

Using Snipping Tools (or Any Other Screen Capture Tool)

And of course, another option is using a screenshot tool, such as the Snipping Tool (which is inbuilt in windows), or any other tool such as Snagit to capture the area that has the table and save it as an image.

Personally, I prefer using the first 2 methods covered in this tutorial (as these are fast and efficient ).

In case I have to capture an additional area close to the Excel table, then I can use this method by using external tools such as the Snipping tool or Snagit.

For example, if you also want to capture the ribbon along with the Excel table then it’s best to use this method.

One more benefit of using a tool such as Snagit is added allows you to annotate the images (where you can add text or create arrows or boxes to highlight specific sections).

So, these are four easy and quick methods you can use to save an Excel table as an image.

I hope you found this tutorial useful.

You may also like the following Excel tutorials:

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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