Excel formula: Convert numbers to text

Generic formula

=TEXT(A1,"0")

Explanation

To convert numbers into text values, you can use the TEXT function.

In the example shown, the formula in C5 is:

=TEXT(B5,"0")

Background

Normally, you want to maintain numeric values in Excel, because they can be used in formulas with other numbers. However, there are situations where converting numbers to text makes sense. For example, you might want to perform a lookup on numbers using wildcards, which can't be done with numeric values.

How this formula works

The TEXT function accepts a number as the first argument, something called "format_text" as the second. The format_text argument works like a number format, and specifies the formatting that should be used when converting the number to text. You can apply all the standard number formats that Excel provides, including dates, times, currency, and so on.

In the example, we are converting the number to text with no special formatting, so we simply use "0". The result is the number as a text string.

Author

Dave Bruns

Related formulas

Convert text to numbers

To convert simple text values to numbers, you can use the the VALUE function, or simply add zero as described below. In the example shown, the formula in C5 is: = VALUE ( B5 ) Background Sometimes Excel ends up with text in a cell, when you really...

Get month name from date

If you need to get the month name (i.e. January, February, March, etc.) from a date, you have several options depending on your needs. Do you just want to display the month name? If you only want to display a month name, you don't need a formula –...

Convert date to Julian format

If you need to convert a date to a Julian date format in Excel, you can do so by building a formula that uses the TEXT, YEAR, and DATE functions. Background "Julian date format" refers to a format where the year value of a date is combined with the...

Pad week numbers with zeros

To pad week numbers (or any number) with zeros using a formula, you can use the TEXT function. In the example show, D5 contains this formula: = TEXT ( WEEKNUM ( B5 , 21 ), "00" ) Which returns the string "07". How this formula works The...

Related functions

Excel TEXT Function

The Excel TEXT function returns a number in a specified number format, as text. You can use the TEXT function to embed formatted numbers inside text.

Excel Formula Training

Formulas are the key to getting things done in Excel. In this accelerated training, you'll learn how to use formulas to manipulate text, work with dates and times, lookup values with VLOOKUP and INDEX & MATCH, count and sum with criteria, dynamically rank values, and create dynamic ranges. You'll also learn how to troubleshoot, trace errors, and fix problems. Instant access. See details here.