Split Text into Columns in Google Sheets: A Step-by-Step Guide

Google Sheets Text to Column

Converting text to columns in Google Sheets is a useful skill for organizing and analyzing data more efficiently. This guide will walk you through the steps and methods to split text into columns, using various delimiters such as spaces, commas, or custom characters.

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Text to Column in Google Sheets

To begin, ensure your data is in one column and that adjacent columns are empty to avoid overwriting existing data. Select the range of cells containing the text you want to divide.

1. Click on Data in the menu.
2. Select Split text to columns.

Google Sheets will attempt to automatically detect the separator used in your data. If it guesses correctly, your data will be split accordingly. If not, you can manually select the appropriate delimiter.

Google Sheets Split Text to Columns

After selecting Split text to columns, a Separator menu will appear next to your selected data. Click the dropdown to choose your delimiter: Comma, Semicolon, Period, Space, or Custom. If choosing Custom, enter the character that separates your data in the text box provided.

For example, to split full names into first and last names, select Space as your separator. For email addresses, where you want to separate the username from the domain, select Custom and enter the @ symbol.

Split Text to Columns Google Sheets

After selecting your separator, simply click anywhere on the sheet to apply the changes. Your text will now be split into separate columns based on the delimiter you selected. This process can be used for various types of data, including full names, email addresses, and URLs, enhancing your data organization and analysis capabilities in Google Sheets.

Remember, it's important to review your newly split data to ensure it has been divided as intended. You may need to perform additional data cleanup if the original data did not follow a consistent format.

Want to learn more about Google Sheets automation? Check out our blog post on addons for Google Sheets, discover how to automate Google Sheets, or explore a collection of Google Sheets automations.

While converting text to columns in Google Sheets can be done manually following the steps above, automating this task can significantly enhance productivity, especially when dealing with large datasets or frequent updates. Automation with Bardeen can streamline workflows, reduce repetitive tasks, and ensure data consistency.

Automate your Google Sheets operations with these Bardeen playbooks:

1. Save selected text to Google Sheets, when I right-click: Capture and save any selected text from the web directly into Google Sheets with a simple right-click, perfect for research and data collection.
2. Copy a newly created Asana task to Google Sheets: Automate the process of syncing new tasks from Asana to Google Sheets, streamlining project management and task tracking.
3. Copy TechCrunch articles for a keyword to Google Sheets: Keep up with the latest TechCrunch articles on your topics of interest by automatically copying them into a Google Sheet for easy access and analysis.

Explore these automations to boost your efficiency in managing Google Sheets data. Download the Bardeen app at Bardeen.ai/download to get started.