Yes, there really is a difference!
Removing a password is creating a clone of the original Excel file without password protection. There was a password, but it was deleted as if it never existed in the first place. Removing an Excel password happens instantly.
Usually, "breaking an Excel password" is the calculation of any suitable password that can unlock the protection. Often, these passwords are completely different from the original ones but again, the process for picking them happens instantly.
Cracking a password (also called password recovery) is the search for the only correct password by trying all possible variations in a brute force attack. Here, we’re talking data-encrypted files with strong protection. Sometimes, it takes a lot of time to crack a password.