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: Notation for Thousands and Millions.

Notation for Thousands and Millions

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 29, 2022)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


2

Jim wonders how he can get Excel to automatically display numbers using "k" for thousands and "m" for millions. As an example, if a cell contains the value $470,000 he would like it displayed as $470k; if it contains the value $1,107,432 he would like it displayed as $1.1m.

One obvious method is to create a formula that will display the information as desired. The following formula will take into account the magnitude of the number in cell B2 and then provide a formatted text string appropriate to that magnitude:

=IF(B2 < 1000,B2,IF(B2 < 1000000,
"$" & ROUND(B2/1000,1) & "k",
"$" & ROUND(B2/1000000,1) & "m"))

Remember that this is a single formula and should be entered entirely on one line. The drawback with such an approach, of course, is that the formula takes up space within your worksheet. To get around this you could, instead, create a custom format that will simply affect the display of the number in the cell.

To create a custom format if you are using a version of Excel prior to Excel 2007, choose Cells from the Format menu, display the Number tab, and click Custom at the left side of the dialog box. Here's the custom format you should create in the dialog box:

[>1000000]$#.0,,"m";[>1000]$#,"k";$#,##0

This format will display both millions and thousands using the desired notation. If the number is below a thousand then it will be displayed without any special notation. As appropriate, values are rounded to one decimal place.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (3528) 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: Notation for Thousands and Millions.

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

Weird Hyperlink Behavior

When you insert a hyperlink, you expect it to look like, well, a hyperlink. But what if it really looks like some strange ...

Discover More

Using Object Anchors

An object anchor is used to signify the point at which an object is inserted into a document. If you want to see these ...

Discover More

Turning Off Insert Options

When you insert rows, columns, or cells in a worksheet, does the resulting Insert Options icon bother you? Here's how to ...

Discover More

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!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Creating a Center Across Selection Button

The ability to center text across a range of cells has long been a staple of experienced Excel users. Here's how to ...

Discover More

Conditional Page Breaks

Need to have your worksheet printout start on a new page every time a value in a column changes? There are a couple of ...

Discover More

Saving Custom Formats

While the implementation of custom formats in Excel is not terribly robust, you can still achieve some amazing results ...

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 7 - 7?

2018-11-07 12:39:15

marina

Hi Allen,

is it possible to convert "M" to "K" dollars in the cell without formatting? For example, I have a file with different fomrats, one column has values in "M" dollars another one in "K" dollars and I need to make an enite file in "K" dollars. When I just format it, the total does not add up correctly because some are in M dollars and some in K... Please help. Thank you.


2018-04-04 05:37:20

Jacopo

Hi Allen,
Great and very useful article.
I have been trying to add billions by updating your format string but cannot make it work. I have used this string:

[>1000000000]$#.0,,,"b";[>1000000]$#.0,,"m";[>1000]$#,"k";$#,##0

Could you please help?
Thanks a lot


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.