The ISTEXT function takes one argument, value, which can be a cell reference, a formula, or a hardcoded value. Typically, value is entered as a cell reference like A1. When value is text, the ISTEXT function will return TRUE. If value is any other value, ISTEXT will return FALSE.
Examples
The ISTEXT function returns TRUE if value is text: If cell A1 contains the number 100, ISTEXT returns FALSE: If a cell contains a formula, ISTEXT checks the result of the formula: Note: the ampersand (&) is the concatenation operator in Excel. When values are concatenated, the result is text.
Count text values
To count cells in a range that contain text, you can use the SUMPRODUCT function like this: The double negative coerces the TRUE and FALSE results from ISTEXT into 1s and 0s and SUMPRODUCT sums the result.
Notes
Dates and times are numbers, not text. The ISNONTEXT function tests for non-text values.
Dave Bruns
Hi - I’m Dave Bruns, and I run Exceljet with my wife, Lisa. Our goal is to help you work faster in Excel. We create short videos, and clear examples of formulas, functions, pivot tables, conditional formatting, and charts.
