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In this article
LEFT returns the first characters of a text. RIGHT takes them from the end.
Syntax
=LEFT(text, [num_chars])| Argument | What it means |
|---|---|
text |
The text. |
num_chars |
How many characters (1 if omitted). |
Examples
Example 1
=LEFT(A2, 2)State code from a GSTIN (first two digits).
Example 2
=LEFT(A2, FIND(" ", A2)-1)First name: everything before the first space.
Power combo
=MID(A2, 3, 10)PAN from a GSTIN: characters 3 to 12.
Related functions
RIGHT · MID · FIND · LEN
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📎 Practice files for this article
- 📗Text-cleaning scenarios workbookExtract and clean text (GSTIN, PAN, emails, names) with PASS/FAIL checks, plus the 3 mistakes that break text formulas.⬇ XLSX · 8 KB
Free to use for learning. Files with macros (.bas) are plain text — import them with Alt+F11 → File → Import File, and always test on a copy.
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