Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Excel 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Excel, click here: Swapping Two Numbers.

Swapping Two Numbers

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 6, 2023)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

If you do any serious macro programming, there will eventually come a time when you want to swap the values in two numeric variables. In some versions of BASIC, there are commands that handle this. VBA leave you to our own devices, however. The following technique should do the trick for most people:

    TempNum = MyNum1
    MyNum1 = MyNum2
    MyNum2 = TempNum

When completed, the values in MyNum1 and MyNum2 have been swapped, and TempNum doesn't matter since it was intended (by this technique) as a temporary variable anyway.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the ExcelTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2525) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Swapping Two Numbers.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

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