Data Import & Export

How to Send SharePoint InfoPath Form Data by Email as Excel

Adam Davis Oct 10, 2026 869 views

Question details

The user wants to receive submitted SharePoint InfoPath form data as an Excel spreadsheet attachment instead of the default XML format.

How to Send SharePoint InfoPath Form Data by Email as Excel

Product: SharePoint InfoPath / Microsoft Excel
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: A user submits an InfoPath form published on SharePoint, and the recipient needs to review the submitted data in an Excel format via email.
Observed behavior: InfoPath natively attaches the submitted form data as an XML file to the notification email, rather than a tabular Excel workbook.

Before you start

Ensure you have access to a spreadsheet application like Microsoft Excel or WPS Spreadsheet to manually convert the XML, or adequate Microsoft 365 permissions to create automated Power Automate flows.

Solution 1Recommended

Automate Excel/CSV Delivery using Power Automate

Use this method if you want to automatically convert and send new SharePoint form submissions as an Excel-compatible CSV email attachment without manual intervention.

Since InfoPath cannot send Excel attachments natively, leveraging Power Automate allows you to capture the SharePoint list item the moment the form is submitted and instantly convert that data into a tabular format.

Create a new automated flow

Log in to Power Automate, click 'Create', and select 'Automated cloud flow'. Choose the trigger 'When an item is created' for SharePoint.

Configure the SharePoint trigger

Select the Site Address and the specific SharePoint List where your InfoPath form publishes its submitted data.

Add a Create CSV Table action

Click 'New step', search for 'Create CSV table', and map the dynamic content from your SharePoint list to populate the columns of the table.

Configure the email attachment

Add a 'Send an email (V2)' action. Fill in the recipient details. In the attachments section, name the file with a '.csv' extension (e.g., 'FormData.csv') and use the output from the CSV table as the attachment content.

Automate Excel/CSV Delivery using Power Automate

Directly Opens in Excel: The generated CSV attachment will open natively in Excel in a clean, tabular format that is easy to read and manipulate.

Solution 2

Manually Import the InfoPath XML into Excel

If you have already received the XML email attachment, you can quickly import the data directly into an Excel workbook.

WPS Spreadsheet Solution

Easily Open and Convert XML Form Data to Excel Formats with WPS Office

WPS Spreadsheet provides a seamless way to open XML attachments received from InfoPath and instantly save them as standard Excel workbooks. It handles structured data intuitively and is highly compatible with all Microsoft Excel file types.

1. Save the email attachment: Download the XML form data attachment from your email to a convenient folder on your PC.
2. Open with WPS Spreadsheet: Launch WPS Office, open the Spreadsheet module, and click 'Menu' > 'Open' to browse for your saved XML file.
3. Choose XML import mode: If prompted by the XML import dialog, choose 'Open as an XML table' to display the InfoPath data in a structured, tabular grid.
4. Save as XLSX: Go to 'Menu' > 'Save As' and select 'Microsoft Excel Workbook (*.xlsx)' from the dropdown menu to finalize the conversion.

Native compatibility with Microsoft Excel (.xlsx, .xls, .csv, .xml) file formats.Free, lightweight, and fast-loading spreadsheet application.Clean tabbed interface allowing you to manage multiple form conversions in one window.Built-in data import tools to effortlessly handle structured XML documents.

microsoft office alternative - wps office

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does InfoPath send emails as XML instead of Excel?

InfoPath is fundamentally an XML-based electronic forms application. By default, it stores and transmits all form submission data in XML format because it is structurally flexible, allowing it to handle complex nested data better than a flat tabular Excel format.

Can I use InfoPath 2013 built-in options to export directly to Excel?

InfoPath itself does not have a direct 'Email as Excel' button. However, if your form is published to a SharePoint list, you can navigate to that SharePoint list in your browser and use the 'Export to Excel' button in the ribbon to manually download the submissions as an Excel web query file (.iqy).

How do I read an InfoPath XML attachment if I don't have Microsoft Office installed?

You can use free office software like WPS Office. Its Spreadsheet application can open XML files directly, allowing you to view the structured data in traditional rows and columns and save it locally as an Excel-compatible file.

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