5 Main Differences between R and Excel
1) Ease of Use
2) Visualization
3) Price, Community, Customization
4) Statistical Analysis
5) Careers
Ease of Use
According to Alex Landa, both R and Excel are capable of making outstanding tables and charts to display data. In his August 17, 2017 article 5 Comparisons Between R and Excel, he shows that Excel has been more popular through Microsoft and tends to carry a more user-friendly interface than R.
The downside of using Excel, though, comes when you try to recall from memory what clicks you made to create your analysis. R can create reproducible scripts that clearly show you each time the pathway of codes that led to your result.
Visualization
In Excel, you may want to export your charts to another graphic friendly platform like Powerpoint to generate a stunning presentation. This is not necessary in R. In R, you already carry embedded graphics to produce sensational presentations.
Price, Community, and Customization
Typically, Excel through Office365 at a minimum cost $70. a year {Excel = cheap}. On the other hand, R is free to download with a community of websites and forums that are always open to share tips and tricks. R is an open source that is open to the public.
Statistical Analysis
Excel is more suited for smaller calculations of statistics and arithmetic. Pivot tables in Excel can also be used to manipulate some large amounts of data.
R capabilities go much further in controling data sizes and identifying trends. R programming allows you ways to clean and organize large amounts of data while giving you options to effectively visualize it.
Careers
Excel and R both carry valuable skills that are in-demand in numerous industries.
Having some experience in Excel not only looks good on your resume but can also immediately land you a job. The earning potential of Excel, however, is much less when compared to R. R now as the most popular programming language, and the standard language for data analytics and data science, can start you on a salary three times the amount than a salary would solely knowing Excel.
Summary
Both R and Excel are effective tools needed for today’s emerging data projects and in-demand jobs. How effective you are in using it through practice, though, will show in your outcome. Not investing in either also places you at a huge disadvantage.