How is VBA Used in Microsoft Excel?

VBA is used in Excel to automate it's environment and create advanced tools.

Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is an advanced programming environment that you use to develop advanced business, engineering and scientific tools.

How VBA can be used in Microsoft Excel.

Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) can be used in conjunction with Microsoft Excel to construct automated tools. Using VBA with Excel, powerful analysis tools can be developed quickly and with minimum cost. VBA can be used for important tasks like:

• Automated report generation in Microsoft Excel
• Automated chart creation in Microsoft Excel
• Performing data mining tasks in Microsoft Excel
• Automating communication between Microsoft Excel and databases
• Building professional grade dashboards and advanced visual interfaces
• Integrating legacy code written in C, Perl, Apple Script, FORTRAN and VB with Excel
• Performing analysis tasks in Microsoft Excel (modeling, optimization...)
• Communicating with Web pages and retrieving their information
• Building self-running programs
• Visualizing data using cells and drawing shapes
• Integrating data from a variety of different data sources making them act like one

In the areas of data processing, modeling and visual interfaces, this is where Excel VBA really begins to shine. Microsoft Excel and VBA can be used to construct sophisticated dashboard driven analysis, modeling and data processing tools that rival any program on the market today. We can say this because we develop complex tools for our customers using Excel and VBA after they have tried other various means and failed.

These tools can go far beyond simple macros that you have probably seen becoming actual robust programs. Excel has a vast array of features like drawing shapes, formulas, worksheet functions, ActiveX controls, worksheets, userforms, charts, Pivot Tables, data tools and cells that when combined together with VBA allow these high-end programs to come alive. When you tie other programs and computer languages to Excel through VBA like Word, PowerPoint, Access, SQL Server, ASP, C Sharp, JavaScript and VB .Net, Excel VBA can tap into these environments obtaining the functionality it does not have.