What is an ET file?
ET stands for WPS Spreadsheets workbook. It was created by Kingsoft and first released in the 2000s. ET is the spreadsheet format of Kingsoft's WPS Office. By default WPS Spreadsheets saves ET files in a format built like Excel 97 files, which is why they can be read and converted to XLS or XLSX.
| Type | spreadsheet |
|---|---|
| Compression | Lossless |
| In a browser | opens in WPS Office; files saved in its default format also open in LibreOffice Calc |
| Common uses | spreadsheets made in WPS Office, widely used in China |
| MIME type | application/vnd.ms-excel |
Which format should you convert ET to?
- ET to XLS for older software that only reads Excel 97 to 2003 files.
How to open an ET file
Whether an ET file opens with a double click depends on the device. Here is what works on each, without buying software:
| Windows | Excel opens it on Windows; Google Sheets and LibreOffice Calc are free alternatives. |
|---|---|
| Mac | Numbers opens it, as do Excel for Mac and LibreOffice Calc. |
| iPhone and iPad | Numbers, Google Sheets and the Excel app open it from the Files app. |
| Android | Google Sheets and the Excel app open it from Files by Google. |
| Web browser | ET opens in WPS Office; files saved in its default format also open in LibreOffice Calc. |
ET compared with other spreadsheet formats
How ET stacks up against the formats people most often convert it to or from:
| Format | Compression | Usually contains | Released | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ET | Lossless | several sheets with values, formulas and formatting | the 2000s | spreadsheets made in WPS Office, widely used in China |
| XLSX | Lossless | several sheets with values, formulas, formatting and charts | 2007 | business spreadsheets, reports and anything shared with Excel users |
| CSV | Lossless | one table of plain text values, one row per line | 1972 | data exports, imports into databases and exchanging tables between programs |
| XLS | Lossless | several sheets with values, formulas and formatting in a binary file | 1997 | older Excel files and systems that still export the legacy format |
| ODS | Lossless | several sheets with values, formulas and formatting | 2005 | LibreOffice and OpenOffice users and public-sector documents |
How to use the ET converter
- Choose the format you want in the Convert to menu.
- Drop your ET files on the box, or press Choose ET files. Several files can go in at once.
- Adjust the settings if you need to; the defaults suit most people.
- Press Convert and save each file with its Download button. Converting to PNG uses our server, which deletes the file right after; the rest never leave your device.
Tips for converting ET files without losing anything
Converting an ET file keeps every value exactly; what can change is structure, such as extra sheets, formulas and styling, depending on the target.
- Keep workbooks as XLSX or ODS while you work on them, and export CSV only for importing into other systems.
- CSV keeps one sheet and no formulas; converting back will not restore what was dropped.
- Save CSV files as UTF-8 so names with accents and other alphabets survive the trip between programs.
- Before converting a large workbook, remove unused sheets and ranges to keep the result small.
- Name the header row clearly before exporting CSV; most import tools map columns by these names.
- If numbers with leading zeros, such as postcodes or phone numbers, must survive, format those columns as text before converting.
- When a system rejects your file, check whether it expects a comma or a semicolon as the separator; many European systems use semicolons.
Convert ET files from the command line
LibreOffice and Poppler do the same on your own computer: the first command makes a PDF, the second writes one image per page.
soffice --headless --convert-to pdf input.et
pdftoppm -r 150 -png input.pdf pageConverting on your own computer keeps the file entirely local, which is worth it for very large or very sensitive documents. For everything else, the converter on this page does it without installing anything.
ET converter FAQ
What is an ET file?
ET stands for WPS Spreadsheets workbook, a spreadsheet format created by Kingsoft in the 2000s. ET is the spreadsheet format of Kingsoft's WPS Office. By default WPS Spreadsheets saves ET files in a format built like Excel 97 files, which is why they can be read and converted to XLS or XLSX.
How do I open an ET file?
ET opens in WPS Office; files saved in its default format also open in LibreOffice Calc. If the program you need will not open it, convert it to a more widely supported format above.
What is the most common ET conversion?
ET to PNG is the conversion people search for most. The ET is opened by LibreOffice, the open-source office suite, on our conversion server, laid out exactly as it would print, and each page is then drawn as an image by MuPDF at 150 dpi, the resolution most documents are printed at.
Does converting ET files here upload them?
Only for some conversions. Converting to PNG uses our conversion server, where the file is deleted as soon as the result is sent back; the other conversions run inside your browser and never leave your device.
Is the ET converter free?
Yes. There is no sign-up and no watermark. Conversions that use our server accept files up to 25 MB, with a fair-use limit per hour. The site is supported by advertising.
Can I convert ET files on iPhone or Android?
Yes. Open this page in Safari on iPhone and iPad, or in Chrome on Android, choose your ET files and download the results to your Downloads folder.
Can I convert several ET files at once?
Yes. Drop as many as you like; they are converted one after another, each with its own download button.