._XLS File Extension
Renamed Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet (Legacy)
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What is a _XLS file?
An _XLS file is a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet that has had its extension changed from .XLS to ._xls. A user or program may have changed the file's extension on purpose or by accident. _XLS files can be opened in Microsoft Excel and other spreadsheet programs after you rename them to use the .xls extension.
More Information
_XLS files are almost always renamed XLS files. Most commonly, email programs such as Windows Live Mail mistakenly produce _XLS files. This happens when a user attaches a spreadsheet whose filename ends in . to an email.
For example, if you attach a spreadsheet named spreadsheet..xls to an email, Windows Live Mail will rename that file to spreadsheet._xls. This issue also occurs when users attach .DOC, .DOCX, and .XLSX files to emails.
While XLS, and thus _XLS, files are typically created by Microsoft Excel, they can also be created using other spreadsheet programs, such as OpenOffice Calc or Apple Numbers. After renaming your _XLS file to use the .xls extension, you should be able to open the file in any of those programs.
How to open a _XLS file
After renaming your _XLS file to use the .xls extension, you can open it in any program that opens XLS files. These include:
- Micrsoft Excel (Windows, Mac, Android, iOS)
- Apple Numbers (Mac)
- OpenOffice Calc (cross-platform)
- Google Sheets (web, iOS, Android, Chrome OS)