Load a Spreadsheet

How to Load a Spreadsheet in Java

Aspose.Cells FOSS for Java lets you open existing Excel .xlsx workbooks from a file path or from any java.io.InputStream. This guide shows both loading patterns and explains how to access worksheets and cells after the workbook is loaded.

Prerequisites

Requirement	Detail
Java	17 or later (JDK)
Build tool	Maven 3.9+ or Gradle 8+
Dependency	`com.aspose:aspose-cells-foss:1.0.0`
Input file	A valid `.xlsx` workbook

Add to pom.xml:

<dependency>
  <groupId>com.aspose</groupId>
  <artifactId>aspose-cells-foss</artifactId>
  <version>1.0.0</version>
</dependency>

Step 1 — Load from a File Path

Pass the absolute or relative file path to the Workbook(fileName) constructor:

import com.aspose.cells.foss.Workbook;

Workbook workbook = new Workbook("data/report.xlsx");
System.out.println("Loaded. Sheets: " + workbook.getWorksheets().getCount());

The constructor reads the file and deserializes the XLSX content into memory. If the file does not exist or is not a valid XLSX, a WorkbookLoadException is thrown.

Step 2 — Load from a Stream

Use Workbook(stream) when the file content comes from a network connection, a database BLOB, or an in-memory buffer:

import com.aspose.cells.foss.Workbook;
import java.io.FileInputStream;
import java.io.InputStream;

try (InputStream is = new FileInputStream("data/report.xlsx")) {
    Workbook workbook = new Workbook(is);
    System.out.println("Loaded from stream. Sheets: " + workbook.getWorksheets().getCount());
}

Always wrap the InputStream in a try-with-resources block so the stream is closed even if the constructor throws.

Step 3 — Load with Options

Use Workbook(fileName, options) or Workbook(stream, options) to pass a LoadOptions instance when you need fine-grained control over the load behaviour:

import com.aspose.cells.foss.Workbook;
import com.aspose.cells.foss.LoadOptions;

LoadOptions opts = new LoadOptions();
// configure opts here if needed
Workbook workbook = new Workbook("data/report.xlsx", opts);

Step 4 — Access Worksheets

After loading, use Workbook.getWorksheets() to iterate sheets or retrieve a specific sheet by index or by name:

import com.aspose.cells.foss.WorksheetCollection;
import com.aspose.cells.foss.Worksheet;

WorksheetCollection sheets = workbook.getWorksheets();
System.out.println("Sheet count: " + sheets.getCount());

// By index
Worksheet first = sheets.get(0);
System.out.println("First sheet: " + first.getName());

// By name
Worksheet named = sheets.get("Summary");

Step 5 — Read Cell Values

Once you have a Worksheet, use getCells() to access individual cells:

import com.aspose.cells.foss.Cells;
import com.aspose.cells.foss.Cell;

Cells cells = first.getCells();

// Read by cell name
Cell a1 = cells.get("A1");
System.out.println("A1 value: " + a1.getStringValue());

// Read by row/column index (0-based)
Cell b2 = cells.get(1, 1);
System.out.println("B2 value: " + b2.getValue());

Step 6 — Release Resources

Workbook implements AutoCloseable. For large files, use try-with-resources:

try (Workbook workbook = new Workbook("data/large.xlsx")) {
    // read or modify the workbook
    workbook.save("data/output.xlsx");
}
// workbook.close() is called automatically here

Next Steps

Working with Spreadsheet Management — full create/modify/save walkthrough
How to Create an Aspose.Cells FOSS Workbook — create workbooks from scratch
How to Work with Validation — add data validation rules

How to Load a Spreadsheet in Java