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In this article
CONCATENATE joins text pieces. It still works for compatibility, but it cannot take a range — CONCAT and TEXTJOIN replaced it.
Syntax
=CONCATENATE(text1, [text2], ...)| Argument | What it means |
|---|---|
text1… |
Single cells or text, not ranges. |
Examples
Example 1
=CONCATENATE(B2, " ", C2)First and last name.
Example 2
=B2&" "&C2The same with the & operator — shorter.
CONCATENATE in practice
Where you will use it
- Older-Excel way to join text, still common in shared files
- Build codes from parts
- Join names and titles
Worked example
| Prefix | Year | Serial | Formula | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| INV | 2026 | 145 | =CONCATENATE(A2,"-",B2,"-",TEXT(C2,"0000")) | INV-2026-0145 |
| CN | 2026 | 9 | =CONCATENATE(A3,"-",B3,"-",TEXT(C3,"0000")) | CN-2026-0009 |
| DN | 2025 | 77 | =CONCATENATE(A4,"-",B4,"-",TEXT(C4,"0000")) | DN-2025-0077 |
Results calculated in Excel.
Mistakes people make
| Mistake | What to do instead |
|---|---|
| Selecting a range | CONCATENATE can't take ranges; use CONCAT or TEXTJOIN |
| Losing leading zeros | Format numbers inside with TEXT |
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