How to Calculate the Day of the Week in Excel

Enter a date reference in a cell., Calculate the abbreviated weekday name., Calculate the full weekday name.

3 Steps 2 min read Easy

Step-by-Step Guide

  1. Step 1: Enter a date reference in a cell.

    For this example, we'll use the date "11/7/2012." In A1, enter that date.
  2. Step 2: Calculate the abbreviated weekday name.

    In cell B1, enter =TEXT((A1), "ddd") into the cell or formula field.

    The "ddd" setting tells Excel to use the first three letters of the weekday name.

    In this example, "ddd" becomes "Wed". , In cell C1, enter =TEXT((A1), "dddd").

    This will calculate the full weekday name.

    To add additional date info, use the following conventions, in any order:
    Time: hh:mm:ss will give you the full time.

    You can also enter any part of that for more abbreviated time displays.

    Day of week: as described above, ddd gives you the abbreviated day name, and dddd gives you the full day name.

    Date: dd will give you the date with a leading zero for the 1st through the 9th.

    A single d will drop the leading zero.

    Month: mmm will give you the abbreviated month, and mmmm will give you the month spelled out.

    Year:
    For just the decade, use yy.

    For the complete year, use yyyy.

    For example, to have field A1 (as above) read as "Wed, 7 Nov., 2012" you would enter "=TEXT((A1), "ddd, d mmm., yyyy").

    Make sure you include the quotes, and that your parentheses are balanced (as many open ones as closed ones).
  3. Step 3: Calculate the full weekday name.

Detailed Guide

For this example, we'll use the date "11/7/2012." In A1, enter that date.

In cell B1, enter =TEXT((A1), "ddd") into the cell or formula field.

The "ddd" setting tells Excel to use the first three letters of the weekday name.

In this example, "ddd" becomes "Wed". , In cell C1, enter =TEXT((A1), "dddd").

This will calculate the full weekday name.

To add additional date info, use the following conventions, in any order:
Time: hh:mm:ss will give you the full time.

You can also enter any part of that for more abbreviated time displays.

Day of week: as described above, ddd gives you the abbreviated day name, and dddd gives you the full day name.

Date: dd will give you the date with a leading zero for the 1st through the 9th.

A single d will drop the leading zero.

Month: mmm will give you the abbreviated month, and mmmm will give you the month spelled out.

Year:
For just the decade, use yy.

For the complete year, use yyyy.

For example, to have field A1 (as above) read as "Wed, 7 Nov., 2012" you would enter "=TEXT((A1), "ddd, d mmm., yyyy").

Make sure you include the quotes, and that your parentheses are balanced (as many open ones as closed ones).

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Joshua Knight

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