Are there Free Excel Alternatives to Minitab for my Lean Six Sigma Green / Black Belt Project?

We get asked this question a lot. Many companies or individuals do not want to incur the expense for Minitab or other costly statistical analysis tools. Another reason this question is often asked is because most people are more comfortable with Microsoft Excel.

The answer to their question is YES … there is are free Microsoft Excel alternatives to Minitab for statistical analysis. Excel has an add-on called the Data Analysis Toolpack. Plus there are many templates that have been developed and are available on the web.

This is a reference to Microsoft Excel alternative tools and templates to Minitab statistical analysis that are taught in our Lean Six SigmaMotorola Corporation originated Six Sigma during the 1980s a... Green BeltSix Sigma trained key contributor and team leader, a part-ti... and Black BeltExperienced, recognized Six Sigma expert and project leader,... course. You will find YouTube videos and websites explaining the different tools.

These statistical analyses are created in MS Excel using tools other than the Data Analysis Tool (i.e., using MS Excel’s different default graphing functions)

• Pareto Chart – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDzBkjo8Qeo
• 2^nd LevelThe value of an input in an experimental run. Pareto Chart (Excel can’t perform this analysis)
• Box and Whiskers Plot – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiS-q6euyf8.
• Time Series Plot – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gl28MOUyYu0
• Scatter Plot – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVA2M7EIx80

These statistical analyses use the MS Excel Data Analysis Tool. We have also included an article explaining the different data analysis tool’s and how to load the MS Excel add-in.

• Installing and Using the MS Excel Data Analysis Tool: https://support.office.com/en-us/article/use-the-analysis-toolpak-to-perform-complex-data-analysis-6c67ccf0-f4a9-487c-8dec-bdb5a2cefab6
• Descriptive Statistics – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wY-Fy-lsE6I
• One Sample t-Test – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-ZcqrdTcIQ
• Two Sample t-Test – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DN4_1ynREIU
• One Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwAn7JTMknA
• Regression Analysis – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87iA8KC2l3s
• Correlation – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kr64tfZmiGA

I have attached MS Excel templates to perform the statistical analyses functions below in Excel that we teach in our Lean Six Sigma Green Belt course using Minitab. **These tools were not developed nor are maintained by any Six Sigma Development Solution, Inc. employee.

• Chi-Squared Test – “Chi-Squared Test.xlsx”
• Gauge R&R (Crossed) – “Gauge R&R Crossed.xlsx”
• Attribute Agreement Analysis – “Attribute Agreement Analysis.xlsx”
• Process Capability Analysis – “ProcessConsists of input, value-add, and output. Capability Analysis.xlsx”
• Variable Control Charts (IMR and XBarR) – “Variable Control Charts.xlsx”
• P-Chart – “P-Chart.xlsx”

If you know of other free Excel alternatives to costly statistical analysis tools, please let us know in the comments.