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: Displaying a Number as Years and Months.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 31, 2025)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
Robert has a formula that determines the payback period for certain investments. For instance, with $20,000 investment in energy-savings equipment and an annual energy savings of $3000, the simplistic payback period to recoup the investment is 6.6667 years. Robert wonders how he can make this payback period (6.6667) show as years and months instead of as a decimal number.
This can be done by simply multiplying the portion of the answer at the right of the decimal point by 12, which results in a number of months. Here is one way to get the desired result, assuming that the payback result is in cell A1:
=INT(A1) & " years / " & INT((A1-INT(A1))*12) & " months"
With the value 6.6667 in cell A1, the formula would return "6 years / 8 months".
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (6960) 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: Displaying a Number as Years and Months.
Professional Development Guidance! Four world-class developers offer start-to-finish guidance for building powerful, robust, and secure applications with Excel. The authors show how to consistently make the right design decisions and make the most of Excel's powerful features. Check out Professional Excel Development today!
When working with dates, you may need to figure out all the dates on which weeks end in a given year. There are several ...
Discover MoreDo you look forward to the weekend? Well, you can use Excel to let you know when the next weekend begins. Here's how you ...
Discover MoreNeed to know the number of months between two dates? It's easy to figure out if you use the DATEDIF function.
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 © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
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:
Comments