Sometimes, when you import data you'll find that it contains extra spaces between the words or numbers that were not visible in the original.
When this happens Excel's TRIM function will normally remove the extra spaces and leave just one space between words.
Occasionally, however, TRIM can't do the job.
On a computer a space between words is not just empty air but a character, and there are actually several different space characters.
The TRIM function was designed to work on the everyday character entered using the space bar, but it can't handle what's known as a non-breaking space that is frequently used in web pages.
To get rid of non-breaking spaces TRIM needs some help from the SUBSTITUTE and CHAR functions.
To find out the details, read this short tutorial on what to do When the TRIM Function Doesn't Work.
Related Tutorials