The FORMULATEXT function returns the formula of a specified reference as a string. In this guide, we’re going to show you how to use FORMULATEXT function and also go over some tips and error handling methods.

---

Supported versions

• Excel 2013 and later

---

FORMULATEXT Syntax

---

Arguments

reference

A cell or range reference containing the target formulas.

---

Examples

Cell

formula returns the formula in cell C3 as a text string. As a result, you can see the formula without actually triggering it.

Range

When the FORMULATEXT function is used with a range reference, it returns an array of formulas from that reference. If you do not use Ctrl + Shift + Enter key combination to generate an array, the formula will return only the first value. Alternatively, you can use a function that works with arrays to derive the results.

The following formula uses the INDEX function to get the formula in the 3^rd row and the 1^st column from an array. That array returns from the FORMULATEXT function with a range reference:

Download Workbook

---

Tips

• To check whether a cell contains a formula or not, use ISFORMULA.

---

Issues

#N/A

You will get an #N/A error if,

• The reference does not have a formula.
• The return formulas contains more than 8192 characters.
• The formula can't be displayed due to worksheet protection.
• An external reference file is not open.