REPLACE Function in Excel: Replace Characters by Position

⏱ 1 min readUpdated 28 September 2026

TextLevel: IntermediateAvailable in: Excel 2007+

In this article
  1. Syntax
  2. Examples
  3. Example 1
  4. Related functions

REPLACE swaps characters at a given position — useful for masking.

Syntax

=REPLACE(old_text, start_num, num_chars, new_text)
Argument What it means
start_num First character to replace.
num_chars How many to replace.

Examples

Example 1

=REPLACE(A2, 1, 6, "XXXXXX")

Mask the first six digits of a 10-digit mobile number.

SUBSTITUTE · MID

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Excel Functions A–ZTAKE Function in Excel: First or Last N Rows of a RangeExcel Functions A–ZSUMIFS Function in Excel: Sum With Multiple ConditionsExcel Functions A–ZTRIM Function in Excel: Remove Extra Spaces
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