Use of Left, Right, and Mid Functions in Excel

Left, Right, and Mid Functions in Excel

Excel is a powerful tool for working with data, and its built-in functions allow you to manipulate and extract information from your data in a variety of ways. In this tutorial, we will focus on three functions in particular: the LEFT, RIGHT, and MID functions. These functions allow you to extract a specific number of characters from a text string, either from the left side, the right side, or the middle of the string.

LEFT Function

The LEFT function allows you to extract a specific number of characters from the left side of a text string. The syntax for the LEFT function is as follows:

=LEFT(text, [num_chars])

• text: the text string from which you want to extract characters.
• num_chars: the number of characters you want to extract. This is an optional argument, and if you omit it, Excel will assume that you want to extract just one character.

Here's an example of how you might use the LEFT function:

=LEFT("Hello World", 5)

This formula will return the first five characters of the text string "Hello World", which is "Hello".

RIGHT Function

The RIGHT function works similarly to the LEFT function, but it extracts characters from the right side of the text string instead of the left side. The syntax for the RIGHT function is as follows:

=RIGHT(text, [num_chars])

• text: the text string from which you want to extract characters.
• num_chars: the number of characters you want to extract. This is an optional argument, and if you omit it, Excel will assume that you want to extract just one character.

Here's an example of how you might use the RIGHT function:

=RIGHT("Hello World", 5)

This formula will return the last five characters of the text string "Hello World", which is "World".

MID Function

The MID function allows you to extract a specific number of characters from a text string, starting at a specific position within the string. The syntax for the MID function is as follows:

=MID(text, start_num, num_chars)

• text: the text string from which you want to extract characters.
• start_num: the position within the text string where you want to start extracting characters. The first character in the string is at position 1.
• num_chars: the number of characters you want to extract.

Here's an example of how you might use the MID function:

=MID("Hello World", 2, 4)

This formula will return a four-character string starting at the second character of the text string "Hello World", which is "ello".

Conclusion

The LEFT, RIGHT, and MID functions are useful for extracting specific characters from a text string in Excel. Whether you want to extract characters from the left side, the right side, or the middle of the string, these functions have you covered. With a little bit of practice, you'll be able to use these functions to manipulate and extract information from your data with ease.

More Examples

Here are a few additional examples of how you can use the LEFT, RIGHT, and MID functions in Excel:

• Extract the first three characters of a product code:

      =LEFT(A2, 3)
      

  This formula would extract the first three characters of the text string in cell A2.
• Extract the last four digits of a phone number:

      =RIGHT(B3, 4)
      

  This formula would extract the last four digits of the text string in cell B3.
• Extract the middle initials from a person's name:

      =MID(C4, 2, 1)
      

  This formula would extract the middle initial from the text string in cell C4 by starting at the second character and extracting just one character.
• Extract the domain name from an email address:

    =RIGHT(D5, LEN(D5)-FIND("@", D5))
    

  This formula uses the RIGHT and LEN functions to extract the characters from the right side of the text string in cell D5, starting at the position of the "@" symbol. The FIND function is used to locate the position of the "@" symbol within the text string.

As you can see, the LEFT, RIGHT, and MID functions can be combined with other functions to extract specific pieces of information from text strings in Excel. With a little bit of creativity, you can use these functions to solve a wide variety of problems.