Excel product configurator
Turn your Excel price book into a product configurator.
Many manufacturers already run an Excel configurator: dropdowns, lookup formulas and a price sheet that one person fully understands. ReadyVariant reads the same workbook, with its size grids, adders, footnotes and rules, and turns it into a configurator your estimators, reps and website can use, with every price traced back to its cell.
Updated
LIVE SAMPLE · NO SIGNUP
A flat combinations table
One row per valid combination, one price per row. Choose options and see the price change.
Sample prices in USD · Tax and freight not included.
View source spreadsheet
| Model | Width | Height | Finish | Unit price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flush | 36 | 84 | Primed | $425.00 |
| Flush | 36 | 84 | Painted | $495.00 |
| Flush | 42 | 84 | Primed | $465.00 |
| Flush | 42 | 84 | Painted | $535.00 |
| Vision panel | 36 | 84 | Primed | $625.00 |
| Vision panel | 36 | 84 | Painted | $695.00 |
| Vision panel | 42 | 84 | Primed | $665.00 |
| Vision panel | 42 | 84 | Painted | $735.00 |
What an Excel configurator does well, and where it breaks
A spreadsheet configurator usually combines data-validation dropdowns, VLOOKUP or INDEX/MATCH price lookups, and sometimes VBA to hide invalid options. It is quick to build and everyone already has Excel. The trouble starts as it grows: copies are emailed around and drift apart, a formula gets overwritten, rules sit in a macro nobody can read, reps and customers cannot use it safely, and nothing records what was quoted at which price.
How to build a product configurator in Excel
Put each option list in its own table on a hidden sheet: models, finishes, sizes. Point every choice cell at its list with Data Validation. For dependent choices, such as the finishes a model allows, use FILTER in Microsoft 365 (=FILTER(Finishes[Finish], Finishes[Model]=B2)) and reference the spilled range in the validation list, or INDIRECT with named ranges in older versions. Look up a size price that rounds up to the next published size with =INDEX(Grid, XMATCH(W, Widths, 1), XMATCH(H, Heights, 1)). Add each adder with XLOOKUP, multiplied by W×H/144 when it is per square foot. Write each rule as a check cell that returns a message, such as a lite too large for the label, and highlight it with conditional formatting. Finally, protect the sheet so only the choice cells can be edited.
When to replace Excel with a product configurator
If one estimator quotes a few options from a short price list, Excel may be the right tool. Replace it when several people quote from the same book, when a price update must reach everyone at once, when schedules with dozens of lines are re-keyed by hand, when rules have moved into macros only one person can read, or when you want a configurator on your website without sending out the workbook.
Size grids convert, with the cells cited
A width-by-height grid, even with a blank top-left cell, N/A cells, or several series stacked or side by side, is proposed as a price-grid conversion. Every price keeps its cell reference, such as “HMD16 prices · E7”, so any quote can be traced back to the sheet.
Adders keep their units
Option lists with an Option, Description, Adder and Unit column map directly. Units such as “per sq ft”, “per LF”, “per UI”, “each”, “per order” and “% of door” become area, perimeter, united-inch, unit, one-time and percent charges, and unknown units are listed for you to choose rather than guessed.
Footnotes become rules you choose
Notes such as “Doors above 4′0″ × 8′0″ require engineering review” or “Minimum charge $150” are proposed as interpretations. You decide whether each one rejects, sends to review, adds a charge or is information only. Prose is never executed as a rule on its own.
Windows, louvers and grilles as well as doors
The same import handles united-inch window pricing, per-square-foot louver rates with minimum areas, free area and multi-section units, and grille neck-size brackets that round up to the next published size. Doors and frames are priced as openings, with the door and the frame sharing the size, hand and fire label.
Check it against prices you already trust
Save reference quotes with the prices you expect, including rejected combinations and oversize cases. The configurator publishes only when every reference passes and every confirmed grid and footnote is covered. When the price book changes, upload the new workbook as a revision: confirmed conversions and references carry forward and are checked again, and issued quotes keep the version they were priced with.
Know what happens to Excel formulas and macros
ReadyVariant reads the saved values in your workbook. It does not execute formulas, macros or external links, so there is no VBA to port and nothing in the file can run. Recalculate and save your workbook in Excel before uploading. Flat combination tables (one valid combination per row) are supported too; the small sample below shows one.
From configurator to quote, and to your website
Estimators price whole schedules imported from CSV, Excel or PDF and issue branded quotes with a PDF the customer can accept online. A website configurator link lets buyers configure one published version, with or without prices, and send a request that arrives as a draft project.
Common questions
How do I build a product configurator in Excel?
Keep option lists in tables, drive each choice with Data Validation (FILTER or INDIRECT for dependent lists), price sizes with INDEX and XMATCH set to round up, add adders with XLOOKUP, and write rules as check cells with conditional formatting. Protect the sheet so only the choices can change.
Can Excel be used as a product configurator?
Yes, for a small product line: dropdowns, lookup formulas and conditional formatting can pick valid options and look up a price. It becomes hard to maintain once several people quote from copies of the workbook, rules move into macros, or customers need access.
How do I turn an Excel configurator into a web configurator?
Upload the workbook as it is. ReadyVariant proposes a conversion for each sheet (price grids, option lists with adders, rule sheets and footnotes). You confirm each one, check a few known prices, and publish. The published configurator is used in your workspace and can be embedded on your website.
Do I have to rebuild my formulas or VBA?
No. The configurator reads the values and tables in your price book, not its formulas. Rules that live only in VBA should be written down as a rule sheet or a footnote so they can be confirmed and tested.
Can I start from a PDF of my price book?
Yes, if the PDF has a text layer. Choose the pages with your grids and adders; each table is read from the text and shown next to an image of its page, and you tick each one after checking it. Scanned PDFs need the Excel file instead.
Does my workbook need a special layout?
No. Title rows, blank corners, stacked series and footnotes can stay where they are. An unusual layout can be converted by choosing its label cells, and unknown units are listed for you to choose rather than guessed.
See it with your own data.
Start with one spreadsheet and a result you already know.