Microsoft Excel – WISE Score & Parent Review | Screenwise

Microsoft Excel

Name: Screenwise
Author: Screenwise

app2014Productivity

86%

WISE Score

4.8

App Store

The ultimate 'boring' app that turns kids into data-literate powerhouses and organizational wizards.

Microsoft Excel

app

2014, Productivity

86%

WISE Score

4.8

App Store

The ultimate 'boring' app that turns kids into data-literate powerhouses and organizational wizards.

Jump to

Also rated on

Where to Find

App Store

Google Play

Screenwise Verdict

Excel is the most useful 'boring' app your kid will ever own. It’s not a game, but for a certain type of kid who loves sorting, categorizing, or optimizing, it functions like a high-stakes sandbox. It’s one of the few apps where the time spent is a direct investment in their future cognitive horsepower.

While the 2026 version is heavily integrated with AI, don't let them skip the basics. The real value is in learning how to structure a problem so a computer can solve it. It’s safe, quiet, and provides a much-needed break from the high-dopamine chaos of the rest of the App Store.

Age Fit

Best for ages 8 and up. Younger kids can play with the colors and basic tables, but the logic-based formulas really click once they have a handle on basic multiplication and 'if-then' reasoning.

WISE Breakdown

Wholesome

It is the digital equivalent of a clean desk and a sharp pencil. No overstimulation, no dopamine loops, just pure organizational zen.

Imaginative

While it looks like a wall of gray boxes, it's actually a sandbox for systemic thinking. Building a custom tracker for Pokémon stats or a fantasy football league is high-level creative engineering.

Safe

No social feeds, no strangers, and no algorithmic rabbit holes. The only real 'danger' is the upsell to a Microsoft 365 subscription.

Enriching

This is a tier-one life skill. It teaches logic, mathematical syntax, data literacy, and the kind of 'if-this-then-that' thinking that underpins all coding.

Parent Info

✓

Why It Might Be Great

Teaches structured logic through formulas that are essentially a gateway drug to computer programming.
Encourages real-world math by letting kids track things they actually care about, like allowance, video game stats, or sports cards.
Introduces AI literacy via Copilot, showing how to use LLMs to summarize data rather than just writing essays.
Professional-grade utility that gives kids a massive head start on school projects and eventually, the real world.

⚠

What to Watch For

The Microsoft 365 paywall is real; while the app is free to download, full editing on larger iPads requires a paid subscription.
Copilot AI hallucinations are still a thing in 2026—it might suggest a chart that makes zero sense or misinterpret a complex prompt.
The mobile interface can be incredibly frustrating for complex work; it's much better suited for an iPad with a keyboard than a phone screen.

Conversation Starters

"If you could build a tracker for anything in your life—your gaming hours, your chores, your LEGO inventory—what would it be?"
"Why do you think businesses use this instead of just writing things down in a notebook?"
"When the AI (Copilot) makes a chart for you, how do we know if it actually got the numbers right?"
"Can you figure out the formula to make this cell turn red if the number is too high?"

Ask Anything

Get a personalized guide on any topic

Writing about Microsoft Excel? Put this WISE score on your site