Combining data from multiple cells with Concatenate in Excel

Excel gives you the ability to combine text from multiple cells into a single destination cell.

For example, if you have a cell that contains a first name and another cell that contains a last name, you can combine those cells together and also include arbitrary strings of characters such as a spaces (“ ”), or comma space (“, ”), or even whole words or phrases.

To combine text from multiple cells:

1. Select the empty cell where you want the function to be stored.


2. In the Insert menu, click Function.


3. In the Category dropdown list, select Text.


4. In the Function area, select Concatenate, then click Enter.

Insert Function - Concatenate

5. Select Text1 in the Concatenate dialog box, then either click a cell on the sheet or type some text.


6. Select Text2 in the Concatenate dialog box, then either click a cell on the sheet or type some text.


7. Repeat steps 5 and 6 as necessary, then click OK.

Function Arguments

Note: In this example, the text elements for a last name, a comma followed by a space, and a first name are combined to make the text string “Beverly, Martha.”

You can use the “&” symbol to make your own concatenate string. This alternate formula would read =C2 & “, “ & B2.