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: Converting Text to Numbers.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated September 18, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
If you are using Excel to grab information from an external source, it is possible that you could end up with some pretty strange information in your cells. For instance, let's say that you have cells that contain numbers such as 1,234.5-. These are formatted as text cells in Excel, and therefore cannot be used in calculations.
The following macro will check the cells in a selected range. If the cells contain text, and that text ends in a minus sign, the macro will move the minus sign to the beginning of the text and stuff it back into the cell. The result is that the cell is converted from a text value to the proper numeric value.
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:
Sub ConvToNum()
Dim MyText As Variant
Dim MyRange As Range
Dim CellCount As Integer
Set MyRange = ActiveSheet.Range(ActiveWindow.Selection.Address)
For CellCount = 1 To MyRange.Cells.Count
MyText = MyRange.Cells(CellCount).Value
If VarType(MyText) = vbString Then
MyText = Trim(MyText)
If Right(MyText, 1) = "-" Then
MyText = "-" & Left(MyText, Len(MyText) - 1)
MyRange.Cells(CellCount).Value = MyText
End If
End If
Next CellCount
End Sub
Note:
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2300) 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: Converting Text to Numbers.
Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!
You may want to add, to your worksheet, the date on which a particular workbook was created. Excel doesn't provide a way ...
Discover MoreYou can use macros to process information in your worksheets. You may want to use that macro to apply the italic ...
Discover MoreYou can assign your macros to a series of custom toolbar buttons, but you may only want those buttons to be visible when ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
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.
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2022 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments