Chapter 2: Entering and Editing Worksheet Data
47
l (^) Number: Enables you to specify the number of decimal places, whether to use a comma
to separate thousands, and how to display negative numbers (with a minus sign, in red, in
parentheses, or in red and in parentheses).
l Currency: Enables you to specify the number of decimal places, whether to use a currency
symbol, and how to display negative numbers (with a minus sign, in red, in parentheses, or
in red and in parentheses). This format always uses a comma to separate thousands.
l (^) Accounting: Differs from the Currency format in that the currency symbols always align
vertically.
l (^) Date: Enables you to choose from several different date formats.
l Time: Enables you to choose from several different time formats.
l (^) Percentage: Enables you to choose the number of decimal places and always displays a
percent sign.
l (^) Fraction: Enables you to choose from among nine fraction formats.
l Scientific: Displays numbers in exponential notation (with an E): 2.00E+05 = 200,000;
2.05E+05 = 205,000. You can choose the number of decimal places to display to the left of E.
l Text: When applied to a value, causes Excel to treat the value as text (even if it looks like
a number). This feature is useful for such items as part numbers.
l Special: Contains additional number formats. In the U.S. version of Excel, the additional
number formats are Zip Code, Zip Code +4, Phone Number, and Social Security Number.
l Custom: Enables you to define custom number formats that aren’t included in any other
category.
Tip
If a cell displays a series of hash marks (such as #########), it usually means that the column isn’t wide
enough to display the value in the number format that you selected. Either make the column wider or change
the number format. n
Adding your own custom number formats ................................................................
Sometimes you may want to display numerical values in a format that isn’t included in any of the
other categories. If so, the answer is to create your own custom format.Cross-Reference
Excel provides you with a great deal of flexibility in creating number formats — so much so that I’ve devoted
an entire chapter (Chapter 24) to this topic. n