Parse Data in Excel

This article teaches you how to parse data separated by delimiters in Microsoft Excel.

Steps

  1. Open Excel. To find it, click the Windows menu, navigate to Microsoft Office, then click Microsoft Excel.
  2. Open the file that contains the data. To find the file, click the rounded Windows symbol at the top-left corner of excel, click Open, then select the file.
  3. Click the header of the column you want to parse. This highlights the whole column.
  4. Click the Data tab. It’s at the top of the screen, near the center (between Formulas and Review).
  5. Click Text to Columns. It’s the first item on the Data Tools tab. This opens the Convert Text to Columns wizard.
  6. Select Delimited. A blue dot will appear next to this option when selected.
  7. Click Next. It’s near the bottom-right corner of the wizard.
  8. Select the delimiters. Place a check mark next to the option that describes the way your data is separated, or select Other to enter your own.
    • For example, if you have cells that contain something like “Smith, John” you may select “Comma.”
    • A preview will appear in the box at the bottom of the screen.
  9. Click Next.
  10. Select an option under “Column data format.” This option should reflect the type of data in the column.
    • For example, if your column contains dates, select Date, then choose the date format from the drop-down menu.
  11. Click the red arrow to the right of the “Destination” field. Now you can specify the destination of the parsed data. You’ll be returned to the spreadsheet to do this.
  12. Click the red arrow again to return to the wizard.
  13. Click Finish. It’s at the bottom-right corner of the wizard. Your data will now display with your updated preferences.