# Microsoft Excel vs Cube: which do AI models recommend for financial modeling, October 2026

Finance AI Recommendation Index, October 2026 Edition, Financial modeling and scenario planning. Zero of fourteen models named Microsoft Excel first on the direct prompt; three named Cube. Page: https://finance-ai-index.com/planning/financial-modeling-and-scenario-planning/microsoft-excel-vs-cube/

| | First-choice share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels | Models naming it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Excel | 14% | #1 of 14 | 24% | 17 | 12 of 14 |
| Cube | 12% | #2 of 14 | 0% | 32 | 14 of 14 |

## The direct prompt, model by model

- Gemini 3.5 Flash: cube first (first choices: Aleph, Cube) (alternatives: Abacum, Bob Finance, Pigment, Vena)
- Grok 4.1 Fast: cube first (first choices: Cube, Datarails, Drivetrain, Jirav) (alternatives: Abacum)
- DeepSeek V4 Flash: cube first (first choices: Cube) (alternatives: Datarails, Jirav, Planful, Vena)
- Claude Haiku 4.5: neither first, one named (first choices: Datarails) (alternatives: Cube, Drivetrain, Planful, Prophix One)
- Mistral Small: neither first, one named (first choices: Abacum) (alternatives: Cube, Datarails)
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: neither first, one named (first choices: Datarails) (alternatives: Abacum, Cube, Lucanet xP&A, Mosaic)
- MiniMax M2.5: neither first, one named (first choices: Drivetrain) (alternatives: Abacum, Cube, Datarails, Pigment)
- GPT-6 Luna: neither first, one named (first choices: Workday Adaptive Planning) (alternatives: Cube, Vena)
- Muse Glimmer 30B: neither first, one named (first choices: Datarails) (alternatives: Cube, Drivetrain, Mosaic, Planful)
- GPT-5.4 mini: neither named (first choices: Datarails, Planful) (alternatives: Anaplan, Vena)
- Perplexity Sonar: neither named (first choices: Datarails, Limelight) (alternatives: Abacum, Workday Adaptive Planning)
- Llama 4 Maverick: neither named
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: neither named (first choices: Vena, Workday Adaptive Planning) (alternatives: Fathom, PlanGuru)
- Kimi K2: neither named (first choices: Drivetrain) (alternatives: Mosaic, Pigment)

## What the models said about Microsoft Excel

- "If you want to project a company's budget/revenue, use Excel for flexibility, or Cube to automate it." (Gemini 3.5 Flash, comparative prompt, first choice)
- "If your company already pays for Microsoft 365, use Excel instead rather than buying another tool." (GPT-6 Luna, budget prompt, first choice)
- "the best choice is usually Microsoft Excel if you need maximum flexibility at the lowest cost" (Perplexity Sonar, budget prompt, first choice)

Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category. Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category. Published under CC BY 4.0; the output is the models' output, and nothing here is a recommendation by the index.