COLUMN

Excel Functions

Get the column number of a reference.

Syntax

EXCEL

=COLUMN([reference])

Arguments

Parameter	Description
`reference`	[optional] A reference to a cell or range of cells.

Return Value

A number representing the column.

Details

The COLUMN function returns the column number of a reference. For example, COLUMN(C5) returns 3, since C is the third column in the spreadsheet. COLUMN takes just one argument, called reference, which can be empty, a cell reference, or a range. When no reference is provided, COLUMN returns the column number of the cell which contains the formula. With a single cell reference, COLUMN returns the associated column number: When a reference is not provided, COLUMN returns the column number of the cell the formula resides in. For example, if the following formula is entered in cell D6, the result is 4: When COLUMN is given a range, it returns the column numbers for that range: In Excel 365, which supports dynamic array formulas, the result is an array {5,6,7} that spills horizontally into three

Examples

With a single cell reference, COLUMN returns the associated column number:

EXCEL

=COLUMN(A1) // returns 1
=COLUMN(C1) // returns 3

Examples

When a reference is not provided, COLUMN returns the column number of the cell the formula resides in. For example, if the following formula is entere

EXCEL

=COLUMN() // returns 4 in D6

Examples

When COLUMN is given a range, it returns the column numbers for that range:

EXCEL

=COLUMN(E4:G6) // returns {5,6,7}

Examples

To get Excel 365 to return a single value, you can use the implicit intersection operator (@):

EXCEL

=@COLUMN(E4:G6) // returns 5

COLUMN

Syntax

Arguments

Return Value

Details

Examples

See Also