With AI tools becoming more common in everyday work, it is easy to assume that tools like Claude in Excel could eventually replace VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) or Macro. After all, Claude can help summarise reports, explain data, write formulas, clean up text, and even generate code. For many Excel users, that feels like a giant leap forward.

But in my view, Claude in Excel and VBA are not the same thing. They are two separate systems, and they solve different problems.

Claude in Excel is useful when you need help understanding something, summarising information, analysing a complicated report, or working through a task that is not repeated often. VBA, on the other hand, is designed for automation. It is built to run the same process again and again with consistency, speed, and control.

That difference matters.

For example, I have used Claude in Excel to help summarise complicated reports. In that situation, it worked well because the task was more analytical than repetitive. I needed help understanding the information and turning it into something clearer. That is where AI can be very useful. It can act almost like a thinking assistant sitting beside you, helping you make sense of a messy spreadsheet jungle.

However, when it comes to repetitive Excel tasks, VBA is still far more efficient.

If a process needs to be completed every day, every week, or every month, VBA can be built once and reused many times. It can open files, copy data, apply formulas, format reports, create outputs, and save results with very little manual input. Once the macro is tested properly, the user can simply click a button and let the automation run.

Claude may be able to help with parts of that process, but it is not always the best tool to run the process itself. Using AI repeatedly for the same task can become slower, less controlled, and more dependent on prompts. The result may also vary depending on how the question is asked. With VBA, the process is defined clearly in code. It follows the same instructions every time.

Here is a simple comparison:

Another important point is offline access. VBA can run without an internet connection. This is still valuable in many business environments. If the automation is saved in an Excel file, it can continue to work locally. Claude and other AI tools usually depend on internet access, account access, and platform availability. If the connection is down or the service is unavailable, the work may be interrupted.

There is also the question of sensitive information. In finance and business reporting, spreadsheets often contain confidential data, such as salaries, client details, invoice information, or commercial reports. Personally, I would be careful about uploading or exposing sensitive information to an AI tool when I do not fully know where the data may go or how it may be processed. Even if the tool has privacy protections, businesses still need to think carefully about data governance, access control, and confidentiality.

This does not mean Claude in Excel is not useful. It absolutely is. It can help users understand formulas, draft explanations, summarise complex data, and generate ideas. In that sense, Claude can support VBA development rather than replace it.

The better way to look at it is this: Claude is excellent for thinking, interpreting, and assisting. VBA is excellent for executing a defined process repeatedly.

For one-off analysis, Claude can save time. For repeatable business processes, VBA still has a strong place.

So, can Claude in Excel replace VBA?

Not completely.

Claude can make Excel smarter. It can help users work faster, understand data better, and reduce the fear of complex spreadsheets. But when the job requires repeatable, controlled, offline, and secure automation, VBA remains a practical and powerful tool.

Rather than seeing Claude and VBA as competitors, it is better to see them as different tools in the same toolbox. Claude is the assistant that helps you think through the problem. VBA is the machine that keeps doing the job once the process is clear.

And in many workplaces, we still need both.