BITLSHIFT Function in Excel: Shift Bits Left

⏱ 1 min readUpdated 28 September 2026

EngineeringLevel: ExpertAvailable in: Excel 2013+

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

BITLSHIFT shifts bits left, multiplying by powers of two.

Syntax

=BITLSHIFT(number, shift_amount)
Argument What it means
shift_amount Negative shifts right.

Examples

Example 1

=BITLSHIFT(1, 4)

Returns 16 — the value of flag number 5.

BITRSHIFT · POWER

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