Spreadsheet Auditor
Checks spreadsheet formulas, errors, and financial-model integrity.
The skill limits itself to auditing and explicitly says not to modify anything without asking, providing basic user confirmation and external-effect control. It does not explain sensitive financial-data handling, data flow, permission isolation, rollback, or secure retention of audit results, so 7 points are deducted.
The workflow, checks, and severity guidance are generally consistent, and VBA limitations are acknowledged. However, there are no executable scripts, dependency notes, abnormal-input handling, diagnostic error messages, or key-path tests; the static calibration therefore limits the score.
Trigger phrases, the three audit scopes, model-type handling, and report format are clear. Non-fit cases, runtime environment, Chinese-language interaction, and mainland-China reachability are not specified, so 4 points are deducted.
The documentation is readable and layered, with scope, checks, severity guidance, and a repository-level Apache-2.0 license. It lacks installation/dependency notes, examples, FAQs, versioning, changelog, and explicit maintenance ownership, so 7 points are deducted.
It defines a useful core task covering formula errors, model integrity, and a review-ready findings table. However, no representative output or third-party execution evidence is included, and actual tool capability and result completeness are unproven; points are withheld under the static cap.
The skill text is auditable, and repository CI provides plugin validation and secret scanning. Those workflows do not cover the audit key paths, and there are no test fixtures, execution results, or independent corroboration, so the score is limited.
- This is a static documentation review and does not prove that the skill can actually read, calculate, or audit Excel files.
- Before use, confirm workbook permissions, financial-data handling requirements, human review, and a recoverable change process.
- Results may be incomplete for VBA, external links, hidden content, and macro-driven calculations; treat these as manual-review items.
- Chinese-language triggering and mainland-China network compatibility are not documented.
What it does & when to use it
audit-xls audits spreadsheets for formula accuracy, errors, and common mistakes. It supports three scopes: a selected range, the active sheet, or the entire model. Model-level audits can cover balance-sheet balance, cash tie-outs, roll-forwards, circular references, and logic checks. The skill reports findings and suggested fixes without changing the workbook unless asked.
It first determines the audit scope, then checks for formula errors, hardcodes inside formulas, inconsistent neighboring formulas, off-by-one ranges, pasted-over formulas, circular references, broken cross-sheet links, unit or scale mismatches, and hidden rows or tabs. For model scope, it identifies the model type and checks balance-sheet, cash-flow, income-statement, circular-reference, reasonableness, edge-case, and DCF, LBO, merger, or three-statement-specific issues. It produces a findings table with sheet, cell or range, severity, category, issue, and suggested fix.
- An investment-banking analyst audits a DCF, LBO, or three-statement model before sending it to a client or investment committee.
- A financial modeler investigates a model that does not balance and needs the gap quantified by period and traced to its source.
- An Excel user checks a selected range for formula errors, hardcodes, inconsistent patterns, or range omissions.
- A fund or corporate finance team reviews cash-flow-to-balance-sheet cash tie-outs before reporting.
Pros & cons
- Covers both targeted formula checks and deep financial-model integrity audits.
- Includes concrete tests for balance-sheet balance, cash tie-outs, working-capital signs, and circular references.
- Categorizes findings as Critical, Warning, or Info and includes suggested fixes.
- Explicitly separates reporting from making changes.
- The source does not document standalone installation or a dedicated test suite.
- Macro-driven calculations cannot be audited from formulas alone and require additional review.
- The source does not specify supported spreadsheet clients, file formats, or automation interfaces.
- Severity and reasonableness judgments depend on the workbook and audit context.
How to install
The repository does not document a standalone installation procedure for audit-xls. Its README says to add https://github.com/anthropics/financial-services in Cowork through Settings → Plugins → Add plugin, then choose agents or verticals; alternatively, upload a zip of a directory under plugins/. For Claude Code, add the marketplace with claude plugin marketplace add anthropics/financial-services, then install the core bundle with claude plugin install financial-analysis@claude-for-financial-services.
How to use
Provide the spreadsheet to audit and specify selection, sheet, or model scope. Example triggers include: "Audit this sheet", "Check my formulas", "Find formula errors", and "Model won't balance". If no scope is supplied, the skill asks the user to choose one. It reports findings first and should not be expected to modify the model without a request.