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: Entering Dates without Separators.

Entering Dates without Separators

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 25, 2019)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


Different people enter data in different ways. When you enter information into a cell, Excel tries to figure out what type of information you are entering. If you enter a number such as 08242008, Excel assumes you are entering a numeric value, and treats it accordingly. What if the number you enter actually is a date, without any separators? Can Excel understand what you are entering?

Unfortunately, Excel cannot. Why? Because you have given it no indication that this should be a date. (Excel keys on separators, not on numeric values.) If you or your data entry people cannot change their input habits so that separators are also entered, then you will need some sort of a workaround to convert the entered information to an actual date value.

Your first thought might be that you could use a custom format to display the information. Consider the following custom format:

##"/"##"/"####

This format would display the number 08152008 as 8/15/2008. The only problem is that it only changes the display of the number—if you want to use the date as a real Excel date, you cannot do so because you haven't converted the value into something that Excel recognizes as a date.

If the values input were very consistent in their format, and if they were input as text instead of as numeric values, then there is an easy way you can convert them to dates. By very consistent, I mean that the input always used two digits for the month, two for the day, and four for the year. In addition, the cells containing the values must be formatted as text. In this instance, you can follow these steps:

  1. Select the column of dates.
  2. Make sure there is nothing in the column just to the right of the dates.
  3. Choose Text to Columns from the Data menu. (In Excel 2007, select Text to Columns from the Data tab of the ribbon.) Excel displays the Convert Text to Columns Wizard. (See Figure 1.)
  4. Figure 1. The Convert Text to Columns Wizard.

  5. Select the Fixed Width option, then click on Next.
  6. Click on Next again.
  7. In the Column Data Format area, choose Date.
  8. Select the range in the Destination box, then in the worksheet click the cell just to the right of the first value you selected in step 1.
  9. Click on Finish.

If all went well, Excel should have parsed the text values as dates, and you can delete the original column. If this did not work, then it means that either the original values were not formatted as text, or eight digits were not used to enter all the dates.

Another possible solution is to use a formula to convert the entered values into actual dates. The following is one such formula:

=DATE(RIGHT(A1,4),LEFT(A1,IF(LEN(A1) = 8,2,1)),LEFT(RIGHT(A1,6),2))

This formula assumes that the entered date (the one without separators) is in cell A1. The formula will work with either seven- or eight-digit dates.

If you prefer custom functions, you can create one in VBA that examines the data being passed, converts it to a date/time format, and then returns the result. The following function is very versatile in this regard; it will work with both American and European date formats:

Function DateTime(dblDateTime As Double, _
  Optional bAmerican As Boolean = True)
'Converts Date and time "number" without
'delimiters into an excel serialdate (which
'can then be formatted with the Excel
'date/time formats)

'If optional argument is TRUE (or missing),
'function assumes value is of form:
'   [m]mddyyyy.hhmm  (leading "0" not required)

'If optional argument is FALSE, function
'assumes value is of form:
'   [d]dmmyyyy.hhmm  (leading "0" not required)

    Dim iYear As Integer
    Dim iMonth As Integer
    Dim iDay As Integer
    Dim iHour As Integer
    Dim iMin As Integer

    iYear = Int((dblDateTime / 10000 - _
      Int(dblDateTime / 10000)) * 10000)
    iDay = Int((dblDateTime / 1000000 - _
      Int(dblDateTime / 1000000)) * 100)
    iMonth = Int((dblDateTime / 1000000))
    iHour = Int((dblDateTime - Int(dblDateTime)) * 100)
    iMin = Int((dblDateTime * 100 - _
      Int(dblDateTime * 100)) * 100 + 0.5)

    If bAmerican Then
        DateTime = DateSerial(iYear, iMonth, iDay)
    Else
        DateTime = DateSerial(iYear, iDay, iMonth)
    End If

    DateTime = DateTime + (iHour + iMin / 60) / 24
End Function

This macro function assumes that the data being passed to it is a numeric value, as would normally happen when inputting dates without separators. (Refer back to the logic on this at the beginning of the tip.)

As you can tell, there are a number of workarounds, but none of them is as simple as just entering separators when entering the dates. If training yourself or your data input people to do this is difficult, you might consider setting up some data validation rules for the input cells. These rules can check to make sure that you are entering information using a specific format (such as a date with separators) and stop you if you are not. (How you create data validation rules has been covered in other issues of ExcelTips.)

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 (2039) 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: Entering Dates without Separators.

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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Creating a Hanging Indent

One of the more common formatting tasks for paragraphs is to create hanging indents. This tip explains what they are and ...

Discover More

Spreading Out a Table

If someone sends you a worksheet that has lots of data in it, you might want to "spread out" the data so you can have ...

Discover More

Pasting Multiple Paragraphs Into a Single Cell

Copying information from one program (such as Word) to another (such as Excel) is a common occurrence. If you want to ...

Discover More

Comprehensive VBA Guide Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is the language used for writing macros in all Office programs. This complete guide shows both professionals and novices how to master VBA in order to customize the entire Office suite for their needs. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2010 today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Accepting Only a Single Digit

Want a quick way to enter a series of single digits into consecutive cells? The best approach is with a macro, and this ...

Discover More

Entering Large Time Values

If you need to input humongous times into a worksheet, you may run into a problem if you need to enter times greater than ...

Discover More

Entering Data as Thousands

There are many different ways you may need to enter data in a worksheet. For instance, you might want to enter data in ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 6 - 0?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.