5 Ways To Remove Everything Before A Character In Excel

When working with text strings in Excel, you may encounter situations where you need to remove everything before a specific character. This can be a challenging task, especially if you're dealing with a large dataset. Fortunately, there are several ways to achieve this in Excel. In this article, we'll explore five different methods to remove everything before a character in Excel.

Method 1: Using the FIND and RIGHT Functions

One way to remove everything before a character in Excel is by using the FIND and RIGHT functions. The FIND function returns the position of the specified character within the text string, while the RIGHT function extracts the specified number of characters from the right side of the text string.

Here's the formula:

=RIGHT(A1,LEN(A1)-FIND(";",A1))

Assuming the text string is in cell A1 and the character you want to remove everything before is ";", this formula will return the text string starting from the character ";".

How it works:

The FIND function FIND(";",A1) returns the position of the character ";" within the text string.
The LEN function LEN(A1) returns the length of the text string.
The RIGHT function RIGHT(A1,LEN(A1)-FIND(";",A1)) extracts the specified number of characters from the right side of the text string, starting from the position of the character ";".

Method 2: Using the SEARCH and RIGHT Functions

Using SEARCH and RIGHT functions in Excel

Another way to remove everything before a character in Excel is by using the SEARCH and RIGHT functions. The SEARCH function is similar to the FIND function, but it's not case-sensitive.

Here's the formula:

=RIGHT(A1,LEN(A1)-SEARCH(";",A1))

This formula works similarly to the previous one, but it's not case-sensitive.

How it works:

The SEARCH function SEARCH(";",A1) returns the position of the character ";" within the text string, regardless of case.
The LEN function LEN(A1) returns the length of the text string.
The RIGHT function RIGHT(A1,LEN(A1)-SEARCH(";",A1)) extracts the specified number of characters from the right side of the text string, starting from the position of the character ";".

Method 3: Using the MID and FIND Functions

Another way to remove everything before a character in Excel is by using the MID and FIND functions. The MID function extracts a specified number of characters from a text string, starting from a specified position.

Here's the formula:

=MID(A1,FIND(";",A1)+1,LEN(A1))

This formula extracts the text string starting from the character ";" and returns the remaining characters.

How it works:

The FIND function FIND(";",A1) returns the position of the character ";" within the text string.
The MID function MID(A1,FIND(";",A1)+1,LEN(A1)) extracts the specified number of characters from the text string, starting from the position of the character ";" + 1.
The LEN function LEN(A1) returns the length of the text string.

Method 4: Using the REPT and RIGHT Functions

Another way to remove everything before a character in Excel is by using the REPT and RIGHT functions. The REPT function repeats a specified character a specified number of times.

Here's the formula:

=RIGHT(A1,LEN(A1)-LEN(REPT(";",FIND(";",A1))))

This formula uses the REPT function to repeat the character ";" a specified number of times, equal to the position of the character ";" within the text string. The RIGHT function then extracts the specified number of characters from the right side of the text string.

How it works:

The FIND function FIND(";",A1) returns the position of the character ";" within the text string.
The REPT function REPT(";",FIND(";",A1)) repeats the character ";" a specified number of times, equal to the position of the character ";".
The LEN function LEN(A1) returns the length of the text string.
The RIGHT function RIGHT(A1,LEN(A1)-LEN(REPT(";",FIND(";",A1)))) extracts the specified number of characters from the right side of the text string.

Method 5: Using VBA

Using VBA to remove everything before a character in Excel

Finally, you can use VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) to remove everything before a character in Excel. Here's an example code:

Sub RemoveEverythingBeforeCharacter()
    Dim rng As Range
    Dim cell As Range
    Dim char As String
    
    Set rng = Selection
    char = ";"
    
    For Each cell In rng
        cell.Value = Right(cell.Value, Len(cell.Value) - InStr(cell.Value, char))
    Next cell
End Sub

This code uses the InStr function to find the position of the character ";" within the text string, and then uses the Right function to extract the specified number of characters from the right side of the text string.

How it works:

The InStr function InStr(cell.Value, char) returns the position of the character ";" within the text string.
The Right function Right(cell.Value, Len(cell.Value) - InStr(cell.Value, char)) extracts the specified number of characters from the right side of the text string.
The code loops through each cell in the selected range and applies the formula.

Excel Character Removal Image Gallery

We hope this article has helped you learn how to remove everything before a character in Excel. Whether you use formulas or VBA, there are many ways to achieve this task. Don't forget to practice and experiment with different methods to become more proficient in Excel. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please don't hesitate to ask.