An automated menu system answered my call to this support number. It seems to be a general Microsoft support number rather than one specifically for Excel. The recording offered Spanish options and gave the standard disclosure about calls being monitored or recorded. It added that they collect personal information and may send it to other countries. The voice-activated menu then asks if you're a home or business user. If you don't give one of those phrases, the menu repeats three times before disconnecting.

After selecting home user, the menu asks what you need help with. If you don't respond immediately, it asks again with a couple of examples. I asked for help with Microsoft Excel. The automated voice told me that help is now online "to better assist you" and it provided the URL for Microsoft's support page. It asked if I would like the link texted to the number I called from. After confirming it sent me the text, the call disconnected. I received it immediately and clicked the link for the webpage. The text also had options for "help" and "stop." Responding with "help," however, just told me to contact them at the same link.

Hoping I could reach a human, I called the support number again. The recording that answered said that help with Microsoft Excel can be found online, gave me the link again, and disconnected. I tried again later out of curiosity but got the same message. It looks like the system saves your number to stop repeat calls. I've never heard of this, but I would guess that it's to prevent people from trying all the menu options until they get a human.

The link goes to a search bar on Microsoft's support website. After typing in your issue, it provides related help articles. There's also a landing page specifically for Excel. While there is a troubleshooting section, most of the articles are tutorials on using Excel. Their trending topics include using functions, customizing data in spreadsheets, and using PivotTables. They have live coaching sessions and downloadable templates, as well. For things like account issues, you'll need to check the Microsoft 365 landing page.

If the help articles don't solve your problem, you can live chat with an online support agent. There's also a user forum that you can post in. Both of these options require signing in with a Microsoft account. It's nice that they offer some alternative to phone support, but this could be an issue if you can't sign in to your account.

There might be a way to get a human on the phone, but they didn't give me a second chance. I can see the benefits of setting up customer service lines like this; they can use fewer agents and avoid a lot of frustrating calls. It'd be nice to have the option of talking to someone, though. While the help page is full of information, it's a pain to navigate and is covered in ads for Microsoft products.