Home › Excel functions › CONCATENATE
CONCATENATE in Excel: Combine Text with &, CONCAT and TEXTJOIN
CONCATENATE joins text from several cells into one. Today there are three better ways to do the same thing: the & operator, CONCAT and TEXTJOIN. This guide shows all four and when to use which.
CONCATENATE · In this guide
CONCATENATE syntax
=CONCATENATE(text1, [text2], …)Each argument is a piece of text, a cell, or a number. CONCATENATE still works in every version of Excel, but Microsoft now recommends CONCAT instead.
Basic example: full names
| A | B | C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | First name | Last name | Full name |
| 2 | Anna | Jansen | Anna Jansen |
| 3 | Ben | Smith | Ben Smith |
The " " in the middle adds the space. Without it, you'd get "AnnaJansen".
The & operator: shortest and most used
=A2 & " " & B2This does exactly the same as CONCATENATE and works in every version. Most Excel users prefer it because it's shorter and easy to read. You can mix in any text: ="Dear " & A2 & "," returns Dear Anna,.
CONCAT and TEXTJOIN: join whole ranges
CONCATENATE needs every cell listed separately. The newer functions (Excel 2019, 2021, 2024 and Microsoft 365) accept ranges.
=CONCAT(A2:C2)joins A2, B2 and C2 without any separator.=TEXTJOIN(", ", TRUE, A2:A6)joins a whole column with a comma and space between each value: Apple, Banana, Cherry, Mango, Pear.
Set ignore_empty to TRUE to skip empty cells, so you don't get double commas.
Keep number and date formatting
When you join a number or date, Excel uses the raw value and drops the formatting. A date becomes a serial number like 46338, and $1.20 becomes 1.2. Use TEXT to control how it looks:
="Price: " & TEXT(D2, "$0.00")returns Price: $1.20="Due " & TEXT(E2, "mmm d, yyyy")returns something like Due Nov 12, 2026=TEXT(F2, "0%")turns 0.25 into 25%
Add a line break
=A2 & CHAR(10) & B2CHAR(10) is a line break on Windows and Mac. Turn on Wrap Text for the cell, otherwise the break won't show.
Which one should you use?
| Situation | Use |
|---|---|
| Joining a few cells, any Excel version | The & operator |
| Joining a whole range without a separator | CONCAT |
| Joining a list with a separator, skipping blanks | TEXTJOIN |
| Existing spreadsheets | CONCATENATE still works; no need to rewrite it |
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between CONCATENATE and CONCAT?
CONCAT is the newer version. It does the same thing but also accepts ranges like A2:C2. CONCATENATE only accepts individual cells and values.
How do I combine text with a space?
Add a space in quotes between the cells: =A2 & " " & B2.
Why does my date turn into a number when I combine it?
Dates are stored as numbers. Wrap the date in TEXT to choose the format, for example TEXT(A2, "mm/dd/yyyy").
How do I combine a whole column into one cell?
Use TEXTJOIN: =TEXTJOIN(", ", TRUE, A2:A100) joins every non-empty cell with a comma and space.