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TEXTBEFORE – Excel Function | Blake Ekelund
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TEXTBEFORE
TEXTBEFORE
Return text before a given character or delimiter.
Intermediate
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Syntax
Tutorial
Examples
Common Issues
Pro Tips
Related
Syntax
=TEXTBEFORE(text, delimiter)
Example Use Cases
Extract text before dash
Pull prefix before underscore
Common Issues
TEXTBEFORE errors when delimiter is missing
Case sensitivity can produce unexpected results
Multiple occurrences require specifying instance_number
Pro Tips
Use instance_num to choose which occurrence to split on
Set ignore_empty to TRUE for irregular text
Cleaner alternative to LEFT + FIND
Related Functions in TEXT & FORMATTING
Beginner Functions
Function
Use Case
Syntax
LEN
Count the number of characters in a text string.
=LEN(text)
CLEAN
Remove non-printable characters from imported or messy text.
=CLEAN(text)
Intermediate Functions
Function
Use Case
Syntax
TEXT
Format numbers, dates, or times as text using custom formatting.
=TEXT(value, format_text)
FIND
Locate the position of a character or substring in text.
=FIND(find_text, within_text, [start_num])
