Overview

If you’ve used Google Apps Script to automate Google Sheets, Docs, or Forms, you might wonder whether Microsoft offers a similar scripting platform for its online tools.
The short answer: yes — but the ecosystem is divided among several products.

Microsoft provides Office Scripts, Power Automate, and Office Add-ins (Office JS) as the core equivalents. Each one covers a specific slice of what Google Apps Script can do.

1. Office Scripts

Office Scripts is Microsoft’s closest counterpart to Google Apps Script for Excel.

  • Works in Excel for the Web (not desktop Excel)
  • Uses TypeScript (a typed superset of JavaScript)
  • Supports automation of data cleanup, formatting, and repetitive workbook actions
  • Scripts are stored in OneDrive or SharePoint
  • Can be triggered manually, on schedule, or via Power Automate flows

Key links:

Example:

function main(workbook: ExcelScript.Workbook) {
  const sheet = workbook.getActiveWorksheet();
  const range = sheet.getRange("A1:B10");
  range.format.autofitColumns();
}

2. Power Automate (formerly Microsoft Flow)

Power Automate is Microsoft’s workflow engine — similar in spirit to “triggers” and “web app” scripts in Google Apps Script.

  • Automates across Microsoft 365 and external services
  • Supports hundreds of connectors (Outlook, SharePoint, Excel, Teams, OneDrive, etc.)
  • Includes “low-code” condition blocks, loops, and expressions
  • Can run Office Scripts as part of a flow (for deeper Excel automation)

Use cases:

  • Send a Teams message when a file is uploaded to SharePoint
  • Generate a PDF from an Excel file on schedule
  • Send an approval request email when a form response is submitted

Key links:

3. Office Add-ins and Script Lab (Office JS)

For full control, Microsoft offers the Office Add-in framework using Office JavaScript API (Office JS).

  • Works with Excel, Word, Outlook, and more (desktop and online)
  • Written in HTML, JavaScript, and TypeScript
  • Deployed via a manifest file hosted on your web server or Microsoft AppSource
  • Suitable for developers who need deep integration or UI elements inside Office apps

Script Lab is an optional add-in that lets you experiment with Office JS directly in Excel or Word — perfect for testing code snippets interactively.

Key links:

4. Comparison Table

Feature Google Apps Script Office Scripts Power Automate Office Add-ins / Office JS
Scope Google Workspace (Sheets, Docs, Gmail, Drive) Excel for the Web Microsoft 365 services and 3rd-party connectors Excel, Word, Outlook (desktop/web)
Language JavaScript TypeScript (JavaScript-like) Low-code logic + embedded scripts JavaScript/TypeScript + HTML
Storage Cloud (Google Drive) OneDrive / SharePoint Cloud Hosted web server / AppSource
Triggers Time-based, form submit, on edit Manual / Power Automate Event-based (file change, new email, etc.) Event hooks via manifest
Integration Level Deep integration across all Google apps Limited to Excel online Broad cross-app automation Full extensibility but requires deployment
Ideal For Spreadsheet + document scripting Excel automation Workflow automation Custom UI and enterprise add-ins

5. Choosing the Right Tool

Your Goal Recommended Microsoft Tool
Automate Excel tasks online Office Scripts
Automate across apps (Outlook, SharePoint, Teams) Power Automate
Build advanced integrations or custom UIs Office Add-ins / Office JS
Heavy data manipulation with PowerShell/Windows tie-ins Combine Power Automate + PowerShell

6. How They Work Together

Microsoft’s automation tools are designed to interconnect:

  • Office Scripts handles workbook logic
  • Power Automate orchestrates multi-app workflows
  • Office JS / Add-ins allow custom interfaces and deeper integrations

This modular design gives you flexibility — you can start with simple Office Scripts and expand into full Power Automate flows or add-ins as needed.

7. Practical Example: Google Apps Script Equivalent

Scenario Google Apps Script Microsoft Equivalent
Clean data in spreadsheet Apps Script for Sheets Office Scripts for Excel
Email on new form submission Apps Script + Gmail trigger Power Automate flow with Outlook action
Create a web form writing to sheet Apps Script Web App Microsoft Form + Power Automate
Schedule task from sheet data Apps Script time-based trigger Power Automate scheduled flow

8. Summary

While Microsoft doesn’t have a single all-in-one scripting hub like Google Apps Script, its combined ecosystem (Office Scripts + Power Automate + Office JS) provides equivalent — and often more scalable — automation capabilities across the Microsoft 365 platform.

If your work revolves around Excel, SharePoint, OneDrive, or Outlook, these tools together can match and even exceed what Google Apps Script can accomplish.

Author: Preston Powell
Last updated: November 2025