It depends what version you are using. Excel 2013 only has one worksheet by default, but earlier versions had three. Note that you can change the number of sheets when creating a new workbook via Excel options.
The default is 3. The maximum number of sheets in a workbook is limited by the computers memory.
By default there are 3 sheets in a new Excel workbook.
You can have over 200 worksheets in a workbook. For Excel 2007 and higher, the actual number of sheets is limited only by the amount of memory available to Excel.
A default is a standard setting, the way something is to start with, before any changes are made. In all software programs there are all initial standard settings for things when you begin, like the size and colour of the text in them. These are the defaults. You can change them afterwards, and even change what the default values are, to save you changing things every time you start a program.When you open Excel, there are always 3 sheets there, which is the default amount. You can add more or take some away, but it always starts at 3. So it can be said that by default, an Excel workbook contains 3 sheets.
In Microsoft Excel, a new workbook will normally have three worksheets.
Excel 2003: The Default is 3, but limited to available computer memory. http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/excel/HP051992911033.aspx
Excel 2003 and earlier are limited to 255 worksheets per workbook. There are usually 3 by default when you start Excel, but you can add more or change the default.
In Microsoft Excel, a new workbook will normally have three worksheets.
The standard is 3 when you open it, but more can be added, limited by the amount of memory in a computer.
Quote from the web: "According to Microsoft Excel, the number of worksheets in a workbook is "limited only by available memory." Current versions of Excel cannot use more than 1 GB of memory even if more memory is available on the system. (Excel 2007 will use as much memory as the system will give it.) In my experience, even if you could generate a well-formed workbook with 650 sheets, it is unlikely that any Excel user would be able to open it without running into Excel's memory limit. I'm impressed that you could even get to 200 sheets without a problem, honestly. "
There will always be a default, and if it is not changed, then there will be 3 worksheets in a new workbook.
The default number of sheets in a new file is 3. This is a configurable option which is set from the Tools -> Options -> General tab. The maximum number of sheets is limited by the available memory on your computer. Info was from Excel 2003 Help "Excel specifications and limits"