LEN function

The LEN function in Excel is a simple yet powerful tool for counting the number of characters in a text string. It can be incredibly useful for tasks like checking the length of a name, verifying the character count in a cell, or making sure your text fits within a specific limit.

Syntax

LEN(text)

Arguments

textThe text string you want to count the characters of.

How to use

The LEN function is straightforward to use. You only need to provide the text string you want to measure. Here are some examples to help you understand how it works:

This formula will return 13 because there are 13 characters in the text “Hello, World!”.

If you have text in cell A2, this formula will count the number of characters in that cell’s content.

Here, the formula will return 5 because there are 5 characters in the string “12345”.

Remember, the LEN function counts all characters, including letters, numbers, punctuation, and spaces.

Additional Information

The LEN function is a handy tool for various tasks, such as data validation, creating character limits for text entries, or performing text analysis. It’s a basic function, but it can be combined with other Excel functions to solve more complex problems.

Tomasz Decker is an Excel specialist, skilled in data analysis and financial modeling.