Excel’s CELL function is one of a group of “Information Functions” that can be used to find out information about a specific cell, worksheet or workbook.
The CELL function's job is to give out information about a cell such as its formatting, the type of data it contains, and whether or not the cell is locked or protected.
The syntax for the CELL function is:
= CELL (info_type , reference )
Info_type: Refers to the type of cell information being sought.
Only specific key words can be used for this parameter. A list of the keywords can be found in Excel's help file for this function.
Reference: Refers to the cell reference that is being checked.
Example Using Excel 2007's CELL Function:
Note: For help with this example, see the image to the right.
- Type a number, such as " 23 ", into cell D1.
- Click on cell E1 - the location where the results will be displayed.
- Click on the Formulas tab.
- Choose More Functions > Information from the ribbon to open the function drop down list.
- Click on CELL in the list to bring up that function's dialog box.
- Enter the word "type" on the Info_type line of the dialog box
- Click on the Reference line in the dialog box.
- Click on cell D1 in the spreadsheet to enter the cell reference into the dialog box.
- Click OK.
- The letter " v " should appear in cell E1 to indicate that the data in the cell is a value.
- The complete function = CELL ( " type " , D1 ) appears in the formula bar above the worksheet when you click on cell E1.
Note:
- If cell D1 was empty, the letter " b " would appear in cell E1 to indicate that the cell was blank.
- If cell D1 contained a word of text, the letter " l " would appear in cell E1 to indicate that the cell contained a label.
- If cell D1 contained a date, the letter " v " would appear in cell E1 to indicate that the cell contained a value - dates are often considered to be values in Excel.
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