Apr 30 2007

Concatenate Formula in Excel

The Concatenate function is a function that I use almost every day. There are numerous times where you will have data split into many columns but need to look up a value that is unique to the combination of two (or more) of those columns. That is where the concatenate formula comes in handy.

Let’s start by taking a look at the formula:

Concatenate(text1, text2, …)

text1, text2 can be either strings, numbers or cell references that you would like joined together. You can join as many strings into 1 string as you would like.

Example 1: =concatenate(”First”, “Last”) will return “FirstLast”
Example 2: =concatenate(”First,” “,”Middle”,” “,”Last) will return “First Middle Last”


Example 3: =Concatenate(B2,”, “,A2) will return “Smith, John”

Concatenate Shortcut
A quick substitute for the Concatenate formula is to use an Ampersand (& or Shift 7) Below are the same 3 examples as above except with the ampersand.

Example 1: =”First”&”Last” will return “FirstLast”
Example 2: =”First”&” “&”Middle”&” “&”Last will return “First Middle Last”
Example 3: =B2&”, “&A2 will return “Smith, John”

** Excel Hints provides Excel Tips and Excel Help for All Levels of Experience.

Related Hints

Did you find this post helpful? Try signing up for our free daily tips.

Enter your email address: 

          

LEAVE A COMMENT

Subscribe Form

Subscribe to Blog

Get Expert Excel Help Today! 714.262.6893
Easily design MySQL databases as familiar spreadsheets in Micros
XLAutomation
XLAutomation

Categories

Excel Poll of the Week

How often do you use Excel macros (VBA)?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
<