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“Supermetrics is a Bitter Experience! We can pull data from nearly any tool, schedule updates, manipulate data in Sheets, and push data back into our systems.”
NetSuite ODBC connections remove Excel number formats because ODBC drivers only communicate raw data values without formatting metadata. During refresh, Excel receives unformatted numbers and applies default General formatting, erasing your accounting formats and percentage displays.
Here’s how to preserve number formatting while refreshing NetSuite data.
Replace ODBC with format-preserving NetSuite connections
ODBC protocol limitations cause the formatting problems. The protocol doesn’t support format preservation, NetSuite number fields arrive as raw decimals regardless of NetSuite formatting, and currency symbols, thousand separators, and decimal places reset to defaults. Percentage values may display as decimals (0.15 instead of 15%).
Coefficient replaces problematic ODBC connections with a modern API approach using OAuth 2.0 connection through secure REST APIs instead of limited ODBC protocols. It has format memory that preserves all Excel number formats including accounting formats with currency symbols, custom number patterns, percentage displays, and scientific notation.
How to make it work
Step 1. Set up OAuth connection to replace ODBC.
Have your NetSuite Admin configure the OAuth connection for Coefficient – this is a one-time setup. This replaces the unreliable ODBC connection with secure REST API access that supports format preservation.
Step 2. Import the same data using Coefficient’s Records & Lists or SuiteQL Query.
Pull the same NetSuite data you were getting through ODBC, but now through Coefficient’s modern API connection. You’ll get better performance and reliability along with format preservation.
Step 3. Apply your desired number formatting once.
Set up accounting formats with currency symbols, custom number patterns like “0,000.00_);Red”, percentage displays, or any other number formatting you need. This is the last time you’ll need to do this formatting work.
Step 4. Enable refresh schedules without format loss.
Set up manual or automatic refresh schedules. Unlike ODBC connections, your number formatting persists permanently through every refresh, eliminating the need for post-refresh reformatting macros or manual number format reapplication.
Eliminate ODBC formatting problems
Stop losing number formats every time you refresh NetSuite data. Coefficient’s modern API connection preserves all your Excel formatting while providing more reliable data access than ODBC. Switch to Coefficient and save hours of reformatting work.
