SECOND Function in Excel: Second From a Time

SECOND Function in Excel: Second From a Time featured illustration

📎 This article includes 1 downloadable practice file ↓

⏱ 2 min readUpdated 5 October 2026

DateLevel: BeginnerAvailable in: Excel 2007+

In this article
  1. Syntax
  2. Examples
  3. Example 1
  4. SECOND in practice
  5. Where you will use it
  6. Worked example
  7. Mistakes people make
  8. Related functions
  9. Continue learning

SECOND returns 0–59. Mostly used to strip seconds from machine timestamps.

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Syntax

=SECOND(serial_number)
Argument What it means
serial_number Time.

Examples

Example 1

=A2-TIME(0,0,SECOND(A2))

Timestamp rounded down to the minute.

SECOND in practice

Where you will use it

  • Seconds from timestamps in logs
  • Lap or call timings
  • Precise time checks

Worked example

TimeFormulaResult
09:07:30=SECOND(A2)30
13:45:05=SECOND(A3)5
18:00:00=SECOND(A4)0

Results calculated in Excel.

Mistakes people make

MistakeWhat to do instead
Expecting total secondsSECOND gives 0-59; total seconds = A2*86400
Text timesConvert first

HOUR · MINUTE

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All Date & Time guides →
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📎 Practice files for this article

  • 📗
    Practice workbook: Dates & times22 tasks on realistic sales data — type your formula, the Check column turns green when it is right. Answers sheet included.
    ⬇ XLSX · 34 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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