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: Determining Columns in a Range.

Determining Columns in a Range

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 12, 2022)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

One of the handy worksheet functions provided by Excel allows you to determine the number of columns in a range. This is accomplished through the use of the COLUMNS function. For instance, consider the following formula:

=COLUMNS(B2:D15)

The value returned is 3, since the range includes columns B, C, and D. You are not limited to address ranges (such as B2:D15), but can also used named ranges with the COLUMNS function.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2432) 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: Determining Columns in a Range.

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. ...

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