Data cleaning tools

Operelio vs Power Query

Pick Operelio if lists go into HubSpot, Salesforce or Pipedrive: 17 cleanup and verification tools, 15 free, and trails that clean each new file, with every push checked first. Pick Power Query to replay recorded steps on each month's file inside Excel.

By Operelio teamUpdated September 19, 2026Prices checked September 19, 2026

Quick answer

Choose Operelio if

  • The file arrives each week or month, and a trail should clean, verify and push it when it lands (Starter and up).
  • You work on a Mac or several computers and want every tool in the browser, with nothing to install.
  • You need emails checked before import: the free email quality check, or email verification (credits, Starter and up).

Choose Power Query if

  • You already have Excel on Windows, and the same file arrives every month to be cleaned the same way.
  • You want to join and reshape data from many sources, including Salesforce objects and reports.
  • You do not want another vendor or an upload.

Operelio vs Power Query side by side

Operelio and Power Query compared
Compared onOperelioPower Query
What it is17 cleanup and verification tools, run by hand or by Bridgeant AI. Trails automate the cleaning steps, route leads and push.A data prep engine built into Excel that records import and cleaning steps and refreshes them.
Where it runsIn the browser, the same on Windows, Mac or any other computer.Full features in Excel for Windows. Excel for Mac and for the web are limited, mainly to refresh.
DuplicatesExact, smart or similarity matching; smart ignores case and spacing. You get a count of rows removed.Remove Duplicates, which is case-sensitive and does not guarantee which row it keeps. Fuzzy matching when merging tables.
Other cleaningHealth Check with fixes, find and replace with regex, filters by job function or seniority, split, merge and compare files.Replace Values, Split Column, Merge and Append Queries, and many more steps.
Email checksThe free email quality check on every plan, and email verification of each mailbox (credits, Starter and up).None built in.
CRMsPushes to HubSpot, Salesforce or Pipedrive, matching people by email address and companies by website or name (Starter and up).Reads Salesforce objects and reports into Excel, with reports cut at the first 2,000 rows. It does not write back.
Repeat filesA trail runs on arrival or on a schedule, as often as every 6 hours, then pushes (Starter and up).Refresh replays the recorded steps on the new file.
PriceFree: 15 of 17 tools, 2,000 rows per job. Starter is $39 a month billed monthly, or $29.25 billed yearly.Comes with Excel. Microsoft 365 Personal is $9.99 a month billed monthly.

Pricing

Power Query has no price of its own: it comes with Excel, so the cost is your Microsoft 365 plan. For one person that starts at $9.99 a month billed monthly, or $99.99 a year billed yearly.

Operelio

Free15 of 17 tools · 2,000 rows per job, 5 jobs a month · CRM push and trails from Starter
$0
Starter$29.25 a month billed yearly · 50,000 rows per job
$39 a month
Pro$74.25 a month billed yearly · 75,000 rows per job
$99 a month
Agency$224.25 a month billed yearly · 150,000 rows per job
$299 a month

Flat monthly plans, set by rows per job and jobs a month. Pro includes 5 seats and Agency 10, with extra seats paid, and email verification uses credits. The price does not change with the size of your CRM.

Power Query

Microsoft 365 PersonalBilled monthly, or $99.99 a year billed yearly
$9.99 a month
Microsoft 365 Apps for businessBilled yearly
$10 per user a month
Microsoft 365 Business Standard with CopilotBilled yearly
$23.50 per user a month

From the vendor's own pricing page, September 2026.

Recorded steps, or one tool per job

Power Query records each step you apply and replays them when you hit Refresh. That pays off when the same file comes every month, and it can join many sources.

Operelio has a tool for each cleanup, verification and replacement job: pick one such as Deduplicate or Health Check, upload the file and get a new file back with a count of what changed. For a file that returns each month, a trail runs cleaning steps such as dedupe and filters on every new version.

How each removes duplicates

Operelio matches exactly, on normalized case and spacing, or by similarity, and tells you how many rows it removed. With smart matching, "Anna@acme.com" and "anna@acme.com" count as one address.

Getting the list into your CRM

Power Query can read Salesforce objects and reports into Excel, but it cannot write back to a CRM.

Operelio writes the clean file to HubSpot, Salesforce or Pipedrive (Starter and up). A report shows what will be created, updated, skipped or refused before anything is written, with warnings for values your CRM would refuse. Blank fields are filled by default.

Where Power Query is better

  • Comes with Excel

    If you already have desktop Excel, there is nothing new to buy.
  • Joins across sources

    It merges and appends tables from many sources, with fuzzy matching, and refreshes them all in one step.
  • Pulling data in

    It reads Salesforce objects and reports, and many other sources, before you clean.

Questions

Is Power Query free?

Yes, if you already have Excel: it has no separate price. Otherwise you pay for Microsoft 365, from $9.99 a month billed monthly.

Can Operelio clean the same file every month?

Yes, with a trail (Starter and up). Upload the new file to the trail's folder or email it to the folder's own address, and the trail cleans, verifies and pushes it. On a schedule, it picks up new files only.

Does Power Query work on Mac?

Partly. Excel for Mac can refresh queries from sources such as CSV, Excel and JSON files, but Excel 2016 and 2019 for Mac have no Power Query support. The full editor is on Windows.

Why did Power Query keep the wrong duplicate?

Microsoft does not guarantee which row of a set Remove Duplicates keeps, and the step is case-sensitive, so rows that differ only in case both stay.

Can Power Query push data to Salesforce or HubSpot?

No. It reads Salesforce data into Excel but does not write back.

Operelio vs Power Query

Clean, route and import in one place

Trails for automated lead flow and routing, Bridgeant for AI cleanup and a toolkit of 17 tools. CRM imports show you what will change before you push. Start free with 15 tools, no credit card needed.