Excel: Combine Text from Two or More Cells into One

You want to merge the contents of several cells — like a first and last name — into a single cell.

Why: Merging cells with Merge & Center would delete data; to combine text you use a formula instead. The result updates automatically whenever the source cells change.

Step 1: Combine with the ampersand (&)

The & operator joins pieces of text. Put any spaces or punctuation between cells inside quotation marks.

1. Click the destination cell.

2. Type =, click the first cell, then type the connector and the next cell. For a first name in A2 and last name in B2 with a space between:

   =A2&" "&B2

3. Press Enter.

The " " inserts the space. Swap it for ", " to get Last, First style, or join a label to a value like ="Total: "&D2.

Step 2: Combine with the CONCAT function

CONCAT does the same job and reads more cleanly when you’re joining many cells. Separate each item with a comma, and add any spaces or text as quoted strings.

1. Click the destination cell.

2. Type the formula, listing each cell and any literal text in order:

   =CONCAT(A2," ",B2)

3. Press Enter.

To append a fixed word, include it as text: =CONCAT(A2," Family") turns Smith into Smith Family.

Note: CONCAT replaced the older CONCATENATE function. CONCATENATE still works for backward compatibility, but use CONCAT (or &) in new workbooks.

Step 3: Combine a whole range with TEXTJOIN

When you’re joining many cells with the same separator, TEXTJOIN saves you from typing the delimiter over and over. Its three parts are the delimiter, whether to ignore empty cells, and the range.

=TEXTJOIN(", ",TRUE,A2:A6)

This joins everything in A2:A6 with ", " between each item, and TRUE skips any blank cells so you don’t get doubled-up commas.

FAQ

My combined number lost its formatting (currency, date). Joining text strips number formatting. Wrap the number in TEXT, for example =A2&" "&TEXT(B2,"$#,##0.00") or =TEXT(B2,"mm/dd/yyyy").

Can I split the combined text back into separate columns later? Yes — select the column and use Data > Text to Columns, or in newer Excel use the TEXTSPLIT function.

Do I need a space, or will the words run together? Without a separator they run together (SmithJohn). Add " " between the cells to include a space.

Sources: Microsoft Support — Combine text from two or more cells into one cell · Microsoft Support — TEXTJOIN function